


LUZ NOCEDA AND THE GOBLET OF F-er, I mean-THE BOILING ISLES CHAMPIONSHIP (eh, close enough)

by Dragonlover_Spinel



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood and Gore, Crying, Drama, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Harry Potter References, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, I changed the rating from Teen and Up to Mature, Important update, Luz Noceda Needs a Hug, M/M, Major Character Injury, Major character death - Freeform, Minor Character Death, Teen Romance, Valentine is a BRO, Violence, because of a multitude of reasons, haha Harry Potter references make me go brrrrrr, hell everyone will need a hug at the end of this story, oh! And he Knows™️ ;), we see one of Eda's MANY ex-lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:13:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 73,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25957309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonlover_Spinel/pseuds/Dragonlover_Spinel
Summary: You'd think Grom was a very big deal. Don't get me wrong it had us ALL SHOOK, but OH BOY you have no idea what comes next.Luz has been enjoying her time at the Boiling Isles since day 1. She's made many friends, explored places across the isles, and so many more misadventures here and there. However, today came another massive leap in her journey of becoming a witch AND being socially acceptable in this strange place. Luz will discover one early morning about a set of "games" Hexside and its rival schools throw once every 5 years to keep their status as "Top School". Though this all sounds like great fun, the aspiring witch-to be will find out that these (obviously) are not what they seem....Tl;dr: The Owl House but has a ton of references from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.Edit: To clear up any confusion, this story takes place about a month or so after Wing it Like Witches but does not go before or after Agony of a Witch and Young Blood, Old Souls. This story is concerned a separate timeline, I guess...
Relationships: Amity Blight & Willow, Amity Blight/Luz Noceda, Eda Clawthorne & Original Character(s), Eda Clawthorne/Original Character(s), Edric Blight/Original Character(s), Emira Blight/Viney, Gus & Luz Noceda, Luz Noceda & Original Character(s), Luz Noceda & Willow, Original Character(s) & Other Canon Characters
Comments: 73
Kudos: 118





	1. The Spy in the Castle

The Boiling Isles was quietly retiring for the night after many shopped in the market, learning more about history of this fantastical world, the usual for everyday denizens of the once living land. However, up in the skull of the mighty deceased Titan making up the Boiling Isles, a castle stood fused inside the eyes of the undead landmass. It was stirring with a mixture of uncomfortable tensions. But it was thankfully not the actual castle itself that was stirring all through the night; more so it had to do with the people inside. Two hooded individuals watched outside the castle Windows as the moon in its crescent phase sailed across the sky. One of them was impatient and seemed panicked. The other turned to the former to check on them. 

"Calm yourself, Dimitri," the latter spoke coldly. "There's really no need of being so antsy. Remember what the Emperor had spoke to us before." 

"It-It's really tomorrow, isn't it??" Dimitri said shakily. They were also literally quaking while standing over the scenery. 

"I know that...thing...is in o-our world, t-tarnishing decades, perhaps CENTURIES, of hard work the Emperor and emperors before him have done...b-but are we all positive killing i-her will really solve all of this?" The other scoffed, smacking lightly at Dimitri then reverting back to their calm state. 

"I am positive." They simply said. 

The door creaked open, and a pale-skinned, middle-aged witch with dark black-blue hair stepped foragers regally. She had a Snowy white staff in her hand and a serious look etched on her face. The two hooded figures stood their ground in a military-esque fashion. 

"Dimitri. Geggan." The witch addressed the names. "Emperor Belos has requested ALL dwellers of the castle to meet in the throne room. It is urgent." 

"It is time, I suppose," Geggan blankly answered. "Very well. Come, Dimitri." 

Dimitri, on the other hand, was the polar opposite of his partner. He was shaking in every part of his body, from his beaked head to his long serpentine tail. Though hesitant he couldn't keep his illustrious ruler waiting. So he had to suck up all his feelings and went along. 

Down the halls they traveled in complete silence. The old witch turned back to peer at the two witches behind her. She mostly had her eyes on the clearly nervous Dimitri. 

"Is there something the matter, Dimitri?" She asked, her voice soothing yet cold. 

The reptilian-bird monster yelped; Was she really talking to him?? 

"N-Not at all, Miss Lilith," the monster lied. "D-Deep in my thoughts, is all. R-really." 

Lilith squinted before turning her body back around. "I thought so." Dimitri made the quietest sigh of relief in the history of relived sighs. 

Before the three was a gigantic door sealed tight with multiple dark-gold locks and chains; the rim of this mighty entrance way--as well as the rest of the dark, gloomy hall--was thankfully illuminated by small torches. Lilith waved her finger in a circular form, an illuminating light blue came from almost nothingness, and the mighty heavy door creaked open with ease. The three walked into the throne room that matched the same dark, gloomy aesthetic of the rest of the palace. They were met with many hooded figures sporting the same attire but various different expressions. Some were stoic and remained quiet and unmoved, others resembled the shaking Dimitri had the entire time. 

But the main attraction was the lumbering creature sitting on his throne simultaneously shrouded in the darkness and the flickering light of the torches dotting the corners of the vast room. 

Emperor Belos himself, was that creature. 

Lilith ditched Geggan and Dimitri in order to speak with her esteemed ruler for a brief few moments. 

"You have requested everyone available in this castle, is that it, sir?" Lilith spoke, her voice much less threatening and more submissive. Belos merely nodded. She breathed sharply and then turned to all these rows of hooded figures of the Emperor's Coven staring at her. 

"Fellow supporters and guard of the Emperor's Coven," she began, loud and stern. "As you may have expected, tonight is a night of upmost importance. Not to just you and your fellow kin standing beside you, but for Emperor Belos, as well." She looked back to the emperor, his hand gestured at the witch to finish. 

"And now, our leader and grand Emperor of the Boiling Isles, Belos, will now discuss the rest of tonight's woes." Lilith stepped down, her staff shaking in her trembling hands and went off to the sidelines. Emperor Belos arose from his grand throne in a manner that made all his kin shiver. 

And then he spoke. 

"As you all, my loyal subjects, may know," his voice was deep, gravely, and was intimidating. "It has exactly been half a decade since the three schools of our nation have went head-to-head in the most exhilarating of challenges bared her in the Boiling Isles. A multi-generation long tradition since the very creation of the schools and the isles themselves." He took in a pained breath. 

"But alas, this year will not be like any other day due to the rude presence of a certain student at the school Hexside Academy of Magic and Demonics. Rumors say her to be....human." 

Gasps filled the room; Dimitri was full on sweating now just from all the reactions of h peers alone. His tail jittered beneath his cloak, and his mask was becoming wet from his sweat. Lilith attempted to remain upright and proud but deep inside she was very opposed to harming the girl. Even if it means getting closer to Eda...

"This age-old tradition, as well as many other traditions we've kept, are slowly leaving their comfort circles and molding into something new due to the human's mindset of this new world," The Emperor seemed very disheartened by this, judge by the shift in his tone. "The emperors before me and I would agree something must be done about the little human girl running amok in society." 

With a twirl of his gloved finger, the masked emperor created a large "light show" of sorts depicting the human girl and another figure, that being of Eda.

"In order to kill two birds with one stone, we must find the human girl--Luz, I believe is her jame, if I am not mistaken--and 'deal' with her separately. And from the experience of my head of the Emperor's Coven, Lilith has seen herself that when the girl was in danger, Edalyn would be right blind her. Hence the perfect arrival of the Boiling Isles Championship."

Murmurs and mutters replaced the gasps and angry noises of the guards and members of the Emperor's Coven. Lilith was shocked despite her face saying otherwise. 

"You did not tell me we were to-" Lilith spoke quietly to her leader but stopped herself when the emperor leaned towards her. 

"I am well aware that you would say otherwise of my actions," he said coldly. "But we both know Eda must be caught and charge somehow. So please, for the sake of your allegiance to this Coven, play along and no more doubts in the meantime. Understood, Miss Clawthorne?" 

The pale witch spoke nothing afterwards, simply nodding her head and stood back in her statue-still form. 

"My disciple and I have discussed in private regarding our situation and have devised a plan," The Emperor announced. Curious mutters came from his subjects as they turned to one another in concern yet fascination. 

The Emperor twirled his gloved finger in the air once more, and his light based presentation changed. It now showed the Luz light depiction keeling over with magic swirling around her suffocating her. The Eda depiction, meanwhile, looked devastated at the death of her apprentice but couldn't more for long as chains wrapped around her arms and legs. The subjects of Emperor Belos all looked at the show n from of them in horror. 

"These year's Boiling Isles Games shall be the death of the human." The Emperor spoke, his voice grew cold and intimidating. 

The gasps of all his subjects increased in volume. Despite being already pale, Lilith felt sick. She knew this was to be expected of Emperor Belos, but she still was dumbfounded by this end result. 

Dimitri had to get out of here. He had to run and warn them. 

As the gasping continued on, the reptilian-bird man ma'am fed to sneak by Geggan who was transfixed by the light show and sped off through crowds of Emperor's Covern guards. Ice the light show was over, the ogre man Geggan felt the lack of a shaking figure beside him and turned to notice Dimitri was indeed gone. Through the clambering voices and movement of the other Emperor's Coven subjects, Geggan looked everywhere to find that bastard. 

"DIMITRI?!" The man yelled through his mask. "You coward! Get back here!!" He spotted his target through the sea of guards and made haste to get him. 

The struggle Geggan put up to get past tall these masked individuals caught the attention of both Lilith and Emperor Belos. They looked to one anger in confusion. 

"Go." Belos demanded. 

Lilith obeyed, taking to the air with her staff and after the two escaping figures. Dimitri was near the end of the crowd with all staring at him when the pale witch leaped down from her staff and was surrounded by thick clouds of sapphire-blue dust. She pointed her staff at the bird-reptile who now was on the floor cowering. All eyes peered at him in synchronized disgust, but their eyes darted from him and to Emperor Belos intimidatingly strolling to the poor monster. Dimitri gulped hard when his gracious leader stared deep into his eyes behind that disturbing mask of his. 

"Dimitri, you poor, yet intelligent fool," the emperor talked down to Dimitri. "I should've known your most recent behavior was most....concerning."

"Pl-Please....Emperor Belos.....don't kill me..." The bird-reptile monster begged. Even with the mask on, it sounded like Dimitri was crying. "Please....P-Please....."

"I would reconsider if you were truly part of the Emperor's Coven," Belos said soothingly; almost too soothingly. "However that is not the case, is it, TRAITOR?" 

Well, Dimitri's cover was officially blown. He tried and tried to scramble to his feet to escape and never see his crazy emperor again, but his fate was sealed. 

Emperor Belos waved his finger around to cast another spell, but this time the circle he created was pitch black and empty. A small rod of black light shot right through Dimitri's chest, midnight veins spread across his body and up to his cheeks before he finally flopped over on his side and died. The last noise he ever made was a shrill cry followed by a disgusting, gurgly moan. Everyone that had just witnessed it were scared and traumatized. They all simultaneously found a new found cause to fear their ruler. Lilith was really going to feel sick this time considering she was now responsible for disposing the body of a traitor. 

"I...suggest we search for any other traitors," the pale witch told Emperor Belos. "A-And search the Isles for who sent Dimitri." 

"You always make the best choices for our group, Miss Clawthorne," Belos agreed. "But first..." 

He turned to Geggan who stood perfectly still. The emperor stuck out his finger again, twirling it around again, and shooting the poor witness and possible friend of Dimitri with the exact same dark spell. The ogre dropped dead in front of the emperor, but Belos did not flinch.


	2. The Big Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all. A little question for the veterans of AO3. Is there a way to transfer a drawing on my photos to the Fanfiction document? I'm trying to find a way to show drawings on my story but it won't send the doodles over. I could really use some help thanks :)
> 
> Also: this chapter contains a bit of swearing and mentions of abuse towards a child

Luz Noceda always found the nights in The Boiling Isles very soothing. Despite being in this great yet disturbing place for about 2 1/2 months, she always was impressed by the glittering stars and the moon floating high above the land every night. The young Latino girl was always excited for school to start, and Hexside was the place to be. She was closely becoming the witch she always wanted not only for being in school but also being taught by the most powerful witch in the Boiling Isles, Eda the Owl Lady. 

But at the moment, the little witch to be was curled up in her bed dreaming of wonderful things until the dawn rose. 

When the sun finally came up and the stars and moon faded beneath the horizon, the Latino girl woke up energized and excited from those dreams. She rearranged her bed, but careful not to wake up the small sleeping demon that was curled up on her lap. 

"Oh King," she chuckled. "You gotta get up, buddy. It's a school day." 

"No, stay," the demon mumbled. "Forget school. Stay....I'm tired." Luz rolled her eyes, chuckled and easily picked up King into her arms once she finished the bed. 

Next thing she did was get all her hygienic activities done, dressed in her multi-colored Hexside outfit and booked it downstairs to the kitchen. Her mentor and part-time parental figure Eda was there waiting for her. She was making...whatever it was in a cauldron for breakfast. Luz sat down and awaited happily for her morning meal. The owl lady snickered. 

"Well good morning, Miss Sunshine," Eda snorted. "What's gotten you all jovial?" 

"Gus, Willow, and I were talking about stuff last night-" Luz paused to bite down on some breakfast. "And they said some stuff including something big happening at Hexside today! In so excited! Those two know I LOVE big stuff!" 

"Huh, is that so?" The witch cocked a brow. "I assumed Grom and that Hexside game were pretty big on their own. What could possibly be bigger than THAT?" 

"I don't know what, but I am still SO PUMPED UP!!" The young apprentice was bouncing up and down like a pen excited child. 

Eda laughed. "Whoa whoa whoa! Okay! Settle down, you little hopping beast, you. Don't want you getting sick on this so called 'big day' of yours." 

Luz-still jumping up and down-listened and continued eating her breakfast while also feeding some of her stuff to King. She noticed a few notifications from her magic orb that were from Willow and Gus. They seemed pretty excited about what's exactly happening today. So Luz concluded the quicker she are her food the faster she'll be surprised by this big thing at Hexside. So she did so, devouring all the food on her plate and dashed off to the entrance to the Owl House. The wooden bird Hooty greeted her with a big smile, then gagging noise and an eventual regurgitation of some school books. 

"Here you go, Luz! Hoot Hoot!" Hooty chirped. "Have fun with learning and stuff!" 

"Eh, yeah. Thanks Hooty." Luz chuckled, kinda nauseous from witnessing Hooty vomiting up her books. 

Eda and King both joined her, the owl lady summoning her staff and off the three went to Hexside. Over the trees and town buildings they flew but Luz did not have the utmost reason to look down. She was lost in her thoughts. 

"What do you think this big event will be, Eda?" The young girl asked. "A graduation? Some sort of new sport? A birthday celebration?? A festival thing that I haven't heard about??? Man, I'm so EXCITED!" 

"Well, that school DOES have a reputation for hosting pretty damn good events," Eda admitted. "It could be possibly anything you've said, and maybe even a weird mixture of that stuff. Who really knows?" 

"I sure hope it's some sort of demon-related holiday," King added. "That school severely lacks demon history."

"That would be the COOLEST, King," Luz smiled and pecked King's head with a soft kiss. "But Eda's right; it could practically be anything. And hey, I'm all for whatever is thrown at me. The more dangerous and exhilarating, the better! What do you think?" 

Luz turned to see her guardian staring off into the distance and the staff also seemed to have stopped in mid air. Curious and worried, Luz scooted forward. 

"Eda? Y-You alright there?" The witch responded not with a sentence but a hand gripping hard onto the human’s cheeks and forcibly made her spin her head to where she was looking. Luz's eyes widened at the sight of what was in front of them. 

The school of Hexside Academy of Magic and Demonics appeared very different from hoe it originally looks. Surrounding the school grounds were possibly hundreds or thousands of tents and market tables. Streamers of many colors, banners flailing in the wind, and thousands of people--both student and normal citizen--occupied the streets. A confetti sort of thing was flung often into the air, and fireworks were lit and blew up in the air. There was also hints of music here as well. 

"No. Way." Eda uttered out. 

"WHOA! LOOK AT HEXSIDE!!" Luz--twice as happy--exclaimed. "The colors!! It's so-BEAUTIFUL! Come on, Eda! We gotta go investigate!"

The Owl Lady said nothing and guided Owlbert down into the crowd. She landed with a thud near a giant tree, the three got off and walked forward. Upon closer inspection, this indeed was some kind of festival or celebration. There was louder music in the air; people talking, singing along, cheering, playing, drinking and eating in all directions. This caught the attention of the Latina witch for sure who was full on running down from the hill to the action below. 

The streets were busy with tents, stands, and stores selling a collection of colorful things, that included merchandise of the three Boiling Isles schools. Color Luz impressed and intrigued. She stared in awe at the stands of food and people wearing vibrant colors and enjoying their time. The young witch noticed some were students from Hexside, hence why Boscha and her posse were hanging out taking selfies of the store windows. Eda cautiously hid her head in her cloak to avoid drawing attention of post be Emperor's guards but also took her time looking around the scenery. 

"All this music, this food, these colorful outfits," she spoke quietly. "Could it be??" 

Things got great to better for Luz when she saw three familiar characters ahead in her path. These three people were her best buddies Willow, Gus and Amity. Willow and Gus were talking excitably to one another while Amity watched intently when all three caught the eye of Luz Noceda and smiled. Amity waved her over.

"OH MY GOSH IT'S YOU GUYS!!" The young apprentice cheered and sprinted over to her friends. "I missed you guys so much!" She took her time giving each other her buddies the tightest and most honest hugs she could, starting with Willow. 

"Luz, you saw us a week ago.." Willow chuckled, returning the hug. Luz moved on to Gus. 

"Oof! Good hug, L-Luz!" The young boy breathed out. 

Finally Luz embraced her dearest friend Amity whose face was already bright as a beet. 

"Isn't this amazing?! What IS ALL THIS?!" The young girl giggled. Amity smiled softly and returned the hug, still blushing. 

"This is the Festival and Feast of the Games, a very VERY old Boiling Isles tradition," the green-haired witch answered. 

"It's a full day of music, games and food," Willow added on. "We knew you'd enjoy it but Gus and I wanted to keep it a surprise so you could be pleasantly surprised when you stumble upon it."

"And best of all," Gus concluded. "I can't believe I'm saying it, but there is NO SCHOOL!!" 

Luz blinked. She stared at herself and at her school outfit. Huh, that does explain the brand new outfits her friends were wearing. It wasn't there regular clothing not their school outfits; they were colorful clothing similar to the other people were wearing around them. 

"I guess I really don't need this outfit 'til tomorrow," Luz blushed. "But I'm loving the new outfits, you guys! Reminds me of those pride parades!" 

"Pride......parade??" Gus asked, tilting his head. 

"It's a human thing, but you guys would LOVE IT!" Luz assured. "But hey! Why are we standing around? Let's have some fun!!!" 

"Yeah! Let's do it!" Luz's three friends cheered alongside her and all ran off to enjoy the festivities. Eda followed behind to chaperone but kept a low profile and her cloak over her head. King had already left to be with Luz's group of friends and hopefully get some food. 

The group did a wide range of fun activities. The group first wanted to watch the local band play some songs and then grab some special pastries in the dessert shop nearby. Amity appeared to have been having the most fun out of all of them, which in return made Luz smile. The two buddies went on their own at one point to play a couple little games. The witches didn't even realize they were holding hands as they walked around. Willow scared them on their path to another game and showed them a prize she just won; King took it off her hands. 

Meanwhile, Gus was practicing some new illusion tricks to some people curious enough to watch. He was met with a few claps and a little bit of whistling, giving him a confident grin. He finally met up with his friends again at the center of all the action where all the best food and games were. The group retired to a small table with some sweets and jugs of water. Eda sat under a tree in the area and away from any people who would recognize her. Too bad that will soon be proven unsuccessful. 

"Here, you should try this candy," Amity offered a tiny mint-like candy to Luz. The human girl happily accepted the candy, popped it into her mouth and felt a strange sensation. A tiny white-and-flower sprouted from her head and continued to grow for a few more moments. Willow began to laugh while Gus and King stared in fascination. Eda couldn't help but feel happy that the little scamps were having fun, and also they were in the dark as to what will be coming up in the future. The more they're in the dark, the better. 

"Heh. Sprout Candy. A classic." The owl lady chuckled. Then came a voice from the area. 

"Edalyn? Is that really you??" The witch flinched from the sudden sound of a regal, booming voice. 

A large bat monster wearing a dark red suit, deep brown cloak and gold-trimmed glasses came regally strolling from the crowd in the festival's center. He was accompanied by a young well-dressed bat who looked confused as to why his presumed father was saying a name. 

The Owl lady rushed over Luz's little pack. "Hey you little gremlins! Why don't we go get some more of those candies? I wanna have one of those candies! I'm hungry for some of those candies let's go!!" She began pushing the children and King away from the area. 

"Welp. I guess we're leaving..." Gus sadly said. 

"Eda. Quit pushing!" Luz interjected. "What's gotten into you-?!"

"Edalyn 'Owl Lady' Clawthorne." The voice called out again except closer. 

"....shit." Eda muttered. 

The large bat and his son approached regally and met Eda's very disappointed gaze. 

"Well well well. Been a while since our last encounter, huh, pellets??" The bat laughed. 

"It's good to see you too, Julius," Eda sighed. 

"Hey Eda I-whoa." Luz was about to talk to her guardian witch when her eyes met this large bat's massive comfy cloak and his son's eyes staring into her's. He flashed a fanged smile. The bigger of the two bat people moved his eyes to see the smaller girl admiring him. 

"Aww look at this little squirt." He cooed. "Who is this beautiful young lady? Is she yours, Edalyn?"

"Well. Yes AND no. But she's not really-" Eda gave a defeated groan. "This is my little apprentice Luz. Luz, this is Julius Jackson-Stars. Ugh, one of my many, many, MANY ex lovers." 

"Oooooooh. Past love history~" Luz swooned. 

"But...how would that work, though??" Gus whispered to Willow who shrugs in response. 

"It is a pleasure to meet...Oh! You're that human my son Valentine here has been yapping at me about. It is a pleasure." Luz and Julius shook hands, and she did the same to Valentine. His purple eyes shined with some admiration for her, and Luz was blushing a little. 

"You are a very talented witch, Luz," Valentine--his voice was smooth yet posh--complimented. 

"Here." 

With the twirl of a finger, a small bright red butterfly made of magic flew around her and landed on the little flower that was still sprouted on her head. It faded and signed in the air: "You are Talented; Courtesy of Valentine Stars". 

Luz laughed at the little display, clapping while Julius and Eda watched. 

"You must be part of the Illusion Coven." The Latino pointed out. The bat nodded. 

"Luz. Luz. Luz." Gus pestered his friend while dragging the collar of her school uniform down. "Do you have ANY idea who this guy is??" 

"Ummmmmmm...a really handsome bat man who happens to know me....and have a knack for illusions??" The young witch innocently asked. 

"That is THE Valentine Stars," Willow gasped. "The most popular boy in Hexside and one of the most powerful students in the Illusion Track. He could make anything if you pay good enough. Heck, Gus here wants to be just like him." 

"I'm so jealous of his making skills!!" Gus moaned. "I want what HE has! Like, now!!" He rushed over and proceeded to shake Valentine's hand. 

"You are AMAZING, Valentine, sir! It's so awesome to meet you!" 

The bat cleared his throat. "Uh, yes of course. Gus, right?" 

The little boy's eyes lit up. "He knows my name....HE KNOWS MY NAME!!!" The little wizard went off to probably cheer his accomplishment to the rooftops. Amity walked around the celebrating witch and met Valentine. The bat boy looked up and down at the witch and grinned. 

"Howdy, Ames," he smirked. 

"You know him? More backstory??" Luz gasped, staring at Amity. 

"Y-Yes, I do." The green-haired witch admitted, her cheeks glowing red. "Val and the Stars's were close partners to my family. Due to his rich background and status, he was part of my group of friends for awhile. That was...until I met Boscha." 

"I will not lie, I WAS in the category of 'mean and popular' teen, and still am. But even I wasn't as bad as that three-eyed demon," Valentine growled. 

"Hey, you do not use my kind for such blasphemous terms!" King snapped. 

"But it is kinda a relief you left even when I stayed," Amity chuckled. "You were smart. I wasn't..." 

Valentine proceeded to ruffle the young witch's hair while smiling mischievously. He pulled away to cast an illusion onto Amity. She was given a fake flower crown with an assortment of Boiling Isles-exclusive flowers. It also adorned some thorny horns on the top, Luz squealed. 

"Oh Dios mío, Querida! You look SO CUTE, Amity," the human laughed, the former blushing much more brightly now. 

"Alright alright it's been fun and games, Julius," Eda tried to sped along the confrontation. "The kiddos and I were just leaving to find a place to settle down and play more games. Why don't we go??" 

"Well. If it's a place to rest you're in luck," Julius announced. "Valentine and I have just bought some tent grounds and set up shop there. We'd be delighted to have the mighty Owl Lady and Company to come along." 

"I might be mistaken, Mr. Stars, but did you by any chance say 'tent grounds??" Luz beamed. 

The gentleman bat laughed heartily and patted the girl’s head. "I like this little lady. She knows what she wants and when to get it. I like that in a child. Why not bring your friends along?" 

The witch smiled widely and squeaked at her friends. They turned to one another and then back to Luz. 

"Of course we'll go," Willow chirped. "It'd be nice to explore the festival some more AND be with Valentine." 

"Yes yes yes yes yes-" Gus continuously said over and over like a broken record.

"Whatever makes you happy, Luz," Amity grinned. "It'll be nice to check out more places, catch up with Val, be together with yo-Ah!! I mean, do some more stuff. Like that. Yeah, neat."

Willow and Gus were staring at one another exchanging knowing looks. Valentine on the other hand was a little skeptical. But Luz who was oblivious as ever smiled even wider and gave Amity a huge hug. 

"You will not be disappointed!! Let's go and have fun, my fellow witch friends!!" Luz confidently cheered. 

The children ran off with Julius and Valentine while Eda and King trailed behind so to not to stir up any concerns. The group walked a long while through the crowds of the festival, dodging people on their scroll phones and eating food too big for their heads. Gus was seen messing around with Val's ears and clad to which the bat would often have to swag him away from his clothing. It was tedious and useless, and Gus would always return to fiddling with it. Amity and Luz were in the middle of a conversation regarding the candies they ate earlier when they steadied to a halt. 

"Alrighty, here we are," the older bat proudly announced. 

This place was....rather disappointing. In fact, there were no tents around this place at all. The group looked to each other in confusion. 

"Are my eyes getting older or are there literally no tents here??" Eda questioned. 

"Did we...go the wrong way?" Amity pondered. 

"Oh nonsense we're here," Julius convinced the group. "I just need to activate the shortcut." He twirled his finger in the air to form a circle but in mid-cycling he spoke again.

"I suggest the lot of you hold onto someone, cuz this will get a little bumpy." 

Willow and Gus held on to each other, King retreated into Eda's luscious grey locks and Luz wrapped her arms around Amity. Amity did the same but felt sweat begin to slide down her face. 

Oh my gods these feelings are killing me, the witch fretted. 

And so with the circle completed, all eight group members were hastily teleported and vanished from their last sight. From a nearby post, however, an Emperor's royal guard caught eye of this and left his station to investigate. 

The trip to the tent grounds was very scary yet enticing. The group were right to hang on so tight due to the force they were flying at in the areas between the dimensions. For the majority of the time, Gus was screaming while the others remained unphased. Well, except for Luz who was hollering with excitement as usual. 

"How are you so calm Luz?!" Amity yelled. 

"It reminds me of one of those rollercoasters back home!!" The human yelled back. "I LOVE ROLLERCOASTERS!!" 

"GOOD FOR YOU KID!!!" Eda shouted from across the between plane. "WISH I COULD SAY THE SAME!"

"ALRIGHT EVERYONE," Julius broke out. "IT IS TIME TO LET GO AND JUMP!!" 

"JUMP?! IN THE MIDDLE OF A VOID-LIKE WHIRLPOOL?!" The Owl Lady interjected. "IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?! WHAT ARE YOU THINKING, JULIEN?!" 

"JUST JUMP AND LET GO OF YOUR PARTNER OR YOU'LL BE STUCK IN THE SHORTCUT." 

Well that was convincing enough. Luz and the others let go of their partners and export iced themselves falling shortly after that. After what seemed like years, they finally escaped the shortcut and found themselves in a totally different location. The dazzling money was short lived, however, when half of the group met the ground via crashing. Luz fell right on her face, Amity and Willow crashed down on their ankles. The other three--Gus, Eda, and King--fell on their backs with a loud thud. Julius and Valentine glided their way down using their massive wings; they clearly had the most experience with teleportation spells. 

"Luz!" Willow exclaimed, scrambling over to her face planted friend.

"You alright down there?!" Amity fretted. 

Luz slowly rose up from the dirt without a peep. 

"You gotta teach me that spell. I have to know it." She spoke. 

Valentine offered a hand to the downed human, to which she accepted and rose to her feet. The group continued on and spotted hundreds of tents in the area around them. They all stared in awe at the people around them and the sights to see, as well as the colors. 

"So how have you been with the whole being the principal of Glandis High thing, huh?" Eda decided to engage in small talk with her ex. A rarity for Eda, of course. 

"Ah yes." The bat spoke. "It has been proven quite difficult to keep a reputation as a rival school's principal when your very own son goes to your rivaling school." 

"Wait." Eda looked behind her at Valentine. "Your kid goes to Hexside? Ha! That's hilariously ironic!!" The old witch began laughing loudly, Julius on the other hand rubbed the bridge of his nose and chuckled himself. 

"What luck..." He groaned. He stopped once he saw their final destination, a large tan tent in the middle of the road. "At last! Home Sweet Home!" 

Luz was first in line to see the tent and admired it for....being pretty normal. That's a start. Julius persisted the human into the tent but not before he stopped her. 

"Ah yes! I completely forgot!" The old bat exclaimed. He twirled his finger once again in the air, and the human’s school uniform was replaced with a cute blue-and-gold striped sweater with Hexside's logo on the front. Her pants became longer pants with a yellow flower pattern at the bottoms. 

"There you go, my dear," Julius said. "Enjoy yourself." 

The four children ran into the tent but Luz was hesitant at first. Once she did eventually enter the tent did it somehow expand into an apartment-sized home. The rooms were decorated with a the three schools' colors and logos. Curtains, beads, and fancy plants dotted different parts of the room. Torches gave this inner mansion of a tent some warm light, and of course, it wouldn't be Boiling Isles architecture without some painting of frightening monsters and powerful individuals. Willow and Gus had already claimed their quarters to hang out for the meantime. 

"¡Caray!" Luz stared in awe then sighed dreamily. "I love magic." 

"And that's different from when?" Amity smirked. 

Luz nodded. "Good point." 

From out of thin air, two more characters Luz knew very well surrounded her and Amity. 

"Heeeeeey Mittens," the boy-Edric-called to Amity. 

"And it looks like our baby sister brought a little cutie with her~" Emira--Edric's twin--purred. 

Amity gave a prolonged, exhausted sigh. "Let me guess. Valentine invited you along, too...?"

"Correction." Edric spoke. 

"Edric begged Val to invite us." Emira finished. 

"Precis-WHAT A MINUTE! That's not AT ALL what happened!!" The twin brother protested quickly. 

"For the record Mittens, Edric has a wicked big crush on that bat," Emira whispered to her little sister, to which the first time in a very long time, Amity giggled. 

"I DO NOT, SHUT UP," Edric yelled, blushing furiously. 

"Oh yes you do!" Emira teased, sticking her tongue out. 

"THAT'S IT!" The twin siblings began casting minor spells at one another and throwing their hands for a fist fight. 

Luz and Amity found joy in this, especially in Amity's case who was already recording them on her scroll phone. Willow and Gus were also enjoying the chaos ensuing in front of them. Eda and King did not pay mind; they were just preoccupied with eating their 4th snack. 

🌟🌟🌟

The afternoon came, and the group continued to look for new things to enjoy at the festival. They did pretty much every game twice and ate fro almost every stand, the music slowing down in the meantime. Willow and Amity sat with each other at a bench while Luz and Gus volunteered to scout around for things to do. In the meantime, the two patched up friends decided to discuss some stuff. 

"Soooooo. How have you been lately?" Amity asked first. 

"Now that you mention it, I'm actually really glad you and I have been patching up our relationship," Willow confessed. "I've been more confident in my classes, getting out of my comfort zone when it comes to friends, my grades are soaring. All of that sort."

"Wow, that's...that's amazing," The green-haired witch beamed. "I'm so proud of you!" 

"You're...proud of me??" The plant witch gasped. "Oh, Amity, I've been waiting so long for you to say those words again." 

The two shared a quick hug before being interrupted by their human friend booking it back to them. 

"Guys guys guys guys!" Luz was hopping up and down vigorously. She seemed very antsy about something; she rapidly pointed her fingers behind her to some more field outside the tent grounds. Luz wanted to show them something but the two witches had no clue what she wanted the to see. 

"Luz. Hold on. Calm down." Amity stressed, holding Luz's shaking arms down to her sides. "Slow yourself down and tell me and Willow what you saw."

The Latina witch was finally set free and began rambling. "Oh so over there-there was a HUGE, an absolutely MASSIVE stadium! Big! Had lots of colorful lights and banners! Cheering! Chants! Just-...I-AGH! Come with me and I'll show you!!" 

The human girl grabbed onto the hands of her two friends and rushed off in the direction she came to show them whatever the hell it was. Turns out it really was a massive stadium that overlooked the entire festival, looking overhead with a dark shadow. More confetti was shot in the air and people riding all sorts of flying staffs and brooms were arriving to presumably get seats. 

"No way, Luz," Willow marveled, her eyes fixated on the entrance to the grand building. "My dads never said anything about the Grudgeby Grand Tournament being in town! This is huge!"

"Sooooooo...I assume we are going??" Amity sheepishly asked, and Luz immediately glanced at her with a shocked face. 

"Well. DUH! Of course we're going!" She bleated. "I wanna check out some of the more professional teams! Maybe get an autograph! Oh, I can even give Willow one if she wants one!" Willow nodded. 

Oh my god. Luz was adorable when she was excited. 

The trio eventually made their way to the start of the ticket line where they actually were the only ones in there. Luz used some snails Eda allowed her to borrow to purchase three tickets and the gang made their way up some rickety wood stairs. There came some peeking areas around the sides to take a look at the action. Some players from their designated professional Grudgeby teams awaited down in the field for further instructions. People on the bleachers surrounding the ginormous field could be seen wearing festive clothing such as the kids', waving around festive flags and cheering like the game depended on it. Some other monsters were serving concessions and reporting the game. 

"Wooooow," Luz admired the action going on around her. "This is so cool!" 

"Are we near our seats yet?" Willow asked. "It seems we've been walking for a long time."

"Who cares??" Amity exclaimed. She balanced her body off one of the support rods on the stairs and looked down at the celebrating people. 

"How high up you guys think we are?" Luz said, joining Amity in the sight seeing. 

"Well if it ever rains," an obnoxious voice answered from below. The girls looked down on the platform below. 

"You will be the first to know." The mysterious figure the voice came from was a dark red, three-eyed monster with tied back black hair and a fashionable dress. In her hand a large maroon staff with a horned serpent Palismen on the end; The woman was smirking. Beside her was Boscha, continuously texting on her scroll phone but somehow knew Willow, Amity and Luz were all there. 

"Ugh. Boscha's mom..." Willow groaned to herself. 

"You three have nothing compared to OUR seats," the three-eyed teen scoffed. "My parents rented out the top box on the left side. Closest to the action." 

"You hush, Boscha!" The older woman barked, smacking her daughter over her head via staff. "There's no point in showing off to these common folk." Before storming off with her daughter, Boscha's mother stopped to see Amity among these so called 'common folk'. 

"Miss Blight. Just what do you think you're doing with a human and a seedling of a witch?" 

The green witch scowled. "They're my friends. You know I have authority over who I get to spend time with, right?" 

The woman scoffed. "Not if your parents have anything to do with it." 

Amity immediately fell silent. "Wait. Mother and Father...they're here?" 

"Amity no-" Luz attempted to quietly convince Amity to not leave. 

"They are expecting you at our booth, dear," Boscha's mom spoke, completely dismissing Amity's earlier claim. "Come along." 

The green-haired witch looked to an upset Willow and Luz, staring at them with a look of disbelief. 

"Well don't leave them hanging, Ames," Boscha called. "That would be pretty 'undignified', right?" 

Amity was at a loss here. She was having fun but now she had to abandon it all for some business ties bullshit. Though at the same time, she can't deal with her last punishment. No. Not again, she couldn't let it. Amity turned to her friends and have a defeated sigh. 

"You...You two go on ahead..." She quietly said. "I gotta go. I'm sorry..." Stroking her arm submissively, she made her way down the stairs and joined Boscha and her mother. 

"Well. There she goes...again." Willow muttered disappointedly. She kicked some dust away with her foot, Luz watching her sadly from a distance. 

"I don't get it," the human sighed. "I could've sworn our Grudgeby match helped her realize she deserved better friends than those horrible girls."

"I believe there is more to what happened than meets the eye," Willow explained. 

Regardless, the two friends (minus one) went up to the very top of the stadium to watch the game. The view was spectacular and totally worth the 30 snails Luz spent on each ticket. Lights from below the stadium blared in illumination, a little too bright for Willow, however. The girls took their spot, Luz received a fancy scarf from a cyclops salesman and a few flags for Willow. Next to them was yet another familiar face. 

"Heya Luz," The girl nonchalantly said. 

"Viney?!" Luz shouted. She swung her arms around the other witch. "Oh my goodness! I haven't seen you in weeks! How's classes? How's life in general??" 

"One, classes have been super cool," Viney answered. "And two, Jerbo and Barcus are gabbing some food so it's just me up here." The witch noticed Willow sitting on the other side. 

"So, this is one of your friends, kid? Nice t' meet ya, the name's Viney." The brown-haired witch offered Willow her hand. Willow shook it. 

"Pleasure. I'm Willow, by the way." 

"Oh yeah! You were the cool witch making those vegetable self-portraits during Grudgeby Season!" Viney remarked. Willow giggled, rubbing the back of her head. 

"A little hobby of mine." 

Then came a blaring sound of a horn and the cheering from the other spectators increased in volume and enthusiasm. 

"Oh shit, it's starting!!" The brown haired witch yelped, pointing down at the field below. 

Luz and Willow looked down where Viney was and watched in awe as a group of pretty powerful looking Grudgeby players entered the stage. 

"Awww man, I think we're too far up," Luz pouted. "Can't see anyone down there. Just...cute little specks." 

"Who's down there, Viney??" Willow asked; she was readjusting her glasses. "These glasses don't really help with long distance action." 

"Down there in the front is St. Epiderm's captain, Loki Minotonn," Viney explained. "Third year. Construction Track, I think." 

Apparently Viney had extremely good long-distance sight. 

"Hold on a second! THE Loki Minotonn is down there?! Playing?!" Willow blurted out. 

"Oooooooooooh. Looks like my sweet baby Willow likes someone~" Luz snickered. 

"No I don't! I just-" Willow frantically looked for an excuse. "He was a good friend to my dads' extended families. He'd f-frequent my birthdays even before A-Amity did! He's a good friend is all! Nothing special."

"Uh huh suuuuuuuuure." The girl narrowed her eyes and smiled widely like some Cheshire Cat. 

Down on the other side, it appeared a stupid amount of spectators were holding up large cards that created an image. It was that of Loki, but also appeared to be animated as well. It showed him and his very flexible skills at the dangerous sport of Grudgby. Dodging massive spikes of rock, do a daring flip across some thorn patches and even doing the infamous Thorn Vault. Some fireworks shot up from the sodium and spilled out "Keep Your Strength, Loki the Trickster." 

The trickster part was probably his nickname or something. 

The three girls watched as the players on both teams moved about and played out their strategies. Even though from seats this high up, they looked like tiny specks fighting each other. Luz was paying intent attention to the game but in the back of her mind she worried for her friend not there with her. She hoped Amity would turn out alright and join them later. But for the time being, the Grudgby game had captivated her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops.  
> I have way too much time on my hands. So here's the second chapter out already. I didn't expect to make this to be done so fast, but hey. It's still good, I think. I hope you all enjoy what is going on so far, and have a good day. :)
> 
> Edit: holy shit.  
> I didn't realize there were so many writing mistakes. I sent back and patched them up and changed even some words to make more sense. Hope this looks better.


	3. A Weekend at Willow's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tag warnings: Violent depiction of death, vomiting, horror themes, swearing, and cult-like activity. 
> 
> The next chapter won't have as much bad stuff as this, I promise.

🌟🌟🌟

The children returned to Julius and Valentine's tent to joke around during Half-Time. Or at least the Grudgby version of Half-Time. The kids were all stuffed to the brim with food and drink and pretty much used up their voices cheering and hollering for Loki's team to win. The first thing Luz did was flop dramatically onto the couch and gave a really big, much more exaggerated sigh. Gus, Willow, Viney, and now Jerbo and Barcus all began to bicker and joke with one another regarding the game. 

"No no no!" Viney argued. "Loki does NOT simply jump and dash! He always twirls and whirls around with every step he takes! I mean, you all saw how flawlessly he dodged those ice spikes and used them as supports, right?!" 

"Gorgeous." Gus playfully added. 

"And when he's mid air, he's like a graceful Peryton gliding across the sky during the night of a blood moon," Willow explained, kicking her legs around while laying on her bed. 

"That's....really specific," Jerbo acknowledged. 

"That's because my sweet darling Willow has a crush on Loki~" Luz teased her friend. 

"What did I SAY LUZ?! No I don't!!" The plant witch protested, chucking a pillow at the chuckling human. She was blushing furiously, almost as bad as Amity's. 

Viney, Jerbo and Gus began singing a stupid song to make fun of Willow even further. Barcus and Luz laughed (and barked) along. 

'🎵A pretty girl such as thee-" 

'-🎵Have feelings strong for a man as Loki-'

"Guys stop..." Willow muttered, hiding her face in her hands. 

'🎵Let your heart guide you mind-'

"I said stop!" The embarrassed witch repeated, but sounded like she was stifling a laugh herself. 

'🎵to live a love that man shall provide-'

Luz decided to join in when the chorus was cued in. 

'🎵O' young lady, oh you young, lovely lady Willow-'

'🎵Give your mind and soul a chance to be-love this charming fellow'

The children continued to belt out in loud song even when the young plant witch threatened to use her powers on them. She swatted at Luz who flawlessly dodged every single slap but Willow ended up singing along with them and having fun. The human plopped right back onto the couch, her belly sore from all the laughing she's done. Once things have settled down and became quiet, she instinctively took a whiff of fresh air into her nose. 

But it didn't smell like fresh air. It smelled like ashes. 

"Hey, guys?" Luz--a little concerned--asked. "Do you smell....smoke?"

The other Hexside students sniffed the air and all unanimously agreed with her. 

"It does smell a little smoky.." Willow pondered.

"Maybe it's the fireworks going off," Viney suggested. "Or perhaps someone's makin' food nearby."

"Man, I'm full of candy but I could really use a devil dog right now.." Gus moaned hungrily. 

But their demeanors all changed when they heard the collective roars and shouts of people outside. Well that surely is mildly concerning. Luz shot up from her sprawled out position on the couch and went to take a look outside the tent. However, Eda beat her to it, darting inside and sweating like she ran a marathon. 

"Kids. We have to go. NOW." She sputtered, panting heavily. 

"Why? What's happening??" Luz asked, confused. "Wait, did YOU do something?" 

Luz's friends exchanged equally as terrified and frightened looks to one another; Barcus uttered out a very nervous whine. 

"What?? Hell no!" The witch defended herself. "Just...-get out of the tent right now!" 

The Owl lady took her young apprentice by the hand and dragged her out by force, revealing what really was going on outside while the oblivious teens were singing and dancing. The tent grounds were ablaze with fire, not like the pink stuff Amity can ignite nor normal red fire from Earth. This particular fire setting ablaze to the tents were as rich and shiny as gold itself. It spared no flammable item in its path; flags, tent frames, grass, bushes, banners, market stands, everything the flames touched it consumed. 

The others behind a shell shocked Luz all gasped and suppressed their screams of terror. The human took a look around while trying not to get in the way of fleeing people and fires at her feet. Emperor's guards were everywhere, each carrying a torch that emitted the same golden-yellow fire. These particular guards, however, looked very different. They were adorned with dark gold masks like that of the fire and also wore large black and white trimmed capes over their backs. From afar, it seemed they were walking emotionlessly but if one were to go observe closer, they were quietly chanting like some sadistic cult. 

"Eda....what-" Luz stared on in horror. 

"What is going on?!" Willow and Gus began to panic. As well as the detention kids did. 

"No time to look on with thousand yard stares," Eda warned them. "We need to get out now or the fire will catch up to us! Find Julius or Valentine but STAY TOGETHER! I'm going to find King and try to put out the fire!" She took out her staff from her cloak. 

"OWLBERT! TO THE SKY!!" The Palisman hooted and the Owl lady took to the sky, fading away into the rising smoke. 

"I'll lead the way!" Luz called to her friends. She activated a light glyph she had stored in her pockets and lit the way. 

The others stood behind her readying some spells and ran alongside some other fleeing monsters and people. The air was suffocating and ominous even with the mortified screams of people. A figure got in their way in front of their escape path. 

"GUARD!" Gus yelped. Willow reacted by twirling her hand and summoning some vines to throw the guard far way. The kids were now booking it through the crowds but soon found out they were getting surrounded by more of those strange guards. No matter how much the witches wielded their magic, or Luz used her glyphs, more and more guards tried to contain them in one area. The raging fire did not help their case at all either.

"We have to separate and divert the guards away," Viney exclaimed hastily. 

"B-But what about-" Luz stammered and tried to counteract her friend's plea but the witch girl already summoned a beast to hopefully outrun the guards. 

"GO WITHOUT US!" Jerbo cried out. "We'll meet where the fire didn't spread to!" Luz gave up trying to convince her friends to stick together, nodded, and split off with Willow and Gus to escape. 

The guards didn't even bother going after the mixed-track teens and focused their energy into chasing after Luz, Willow and Gus. They split off into pairs to smoke them out and capture them. During the sprint, Luz was coughing harshly. She was getting weaker from consuming so much smoke and ash into her lungs. Even the mask she coincidently found from a burned down market stand didn't help that much either. 

"Great," Willow groaned. "My plant magic's burning up out here! We need to split up more." 

"But why are they doing this?!" Luz exclaimed. "These guards, they're usually dumb and harmless unless Eda's involved!"

"I don't think they're after us OR Eda this time," Gus shakily observed. The guards seemed to have moved closer towards the human than to the other witches. 

"I think they're after YOU." Willow concluded, trying once again to use her magic to drive these savage beasts away. 

The Latina's eyes widened. "Me?" She coughed hoarsely a few times. 

"We gotta split off more and meet up again to gather ourselves," the illusionist explained. "Willow! This way! Luz, go the other way!!" 

It was nice to see Gus being the bigger witch in a situation such as this so Luz agreed and dashed the other way as fast as her athletic human legs can power her. Her newer plan was to attract the guards to her, cast a fire glyph and burn them. Or at least to wound them a little bit because she would never kill. She took out some more glyphs and hastily set small objects blocking her path on fire to war off the murderous guards chasing after her. Other times she used her ice glyph to jump or cross obstacles brining in her way. She even wielded her first glyph, the light spell, to distract the guards into thinking she was going another way. 

Luz began to notice the smoke from the golden fires were affecting her breathing, the breaths were short and sounded raspy. The human hacked frequently. But worst of all, even when her main goal was to evade the attention of the guards--similar to what Eda does already--she forgot about one thing. 

Amity was still out there. 

The human witch began to panic. The Emperor's guards could have already stormed the stadium by now, the last sighting of her good friend. Luz had to do something or else Amity would get hurt. Or killed.

"I gotta find Amity." The Latina concluded to herself and ran off in another direction. 

Using another one of her countless light glyphs, she lit the way through the dark smoke while also holding her breath to not cough and gain attention. Thankfully luck was on her side this time. Not only did the smoke begin to clear the farther she ran, the guards that once chased her like dogs chasing game birds were gone. Luz put two-and-two together and realized she could call out to Amity and see if she responds. 

"AMITY! ARE YOU THERE?!" The girl called out desperately. "AMITY!" 

High and low the human looked for her missing friend, neglecting her last mission. She tore down already burnt up tents and stands to see if Amity was at all injured and hidden anywhere. She cut her hand and cheek a few time and torched her hair but nothing a little pat on the head couldn't solve. Up ahead, though, Luz saw the silhouette of a person running through the smoke. The girl's mind immodestly jumped to that being Amity and sprinted in the same direction.

"AMITY! AMITY, OVER HERE!!" Luz hollered again, but the figure did not dare to turn around. 

The human remained in pursuit but this distraction did not help in the slightest when it came to mapping the landscape. Just as she drew closer to who hopefully was the person she was looking for, Luz tripped over a broken barrel and sliced her left eye and cheek across a searing hot fragment of wood. It caused her to yell out in pain and fall over face first whilst clutching her eye. It hurt, it bled, and it smelled like ash and smoke. It burned with a degree so hot Luz found herself swearing in her primary language for a good few minutes. The pain became too unbearable, and the poor human passed out. 

🌟🌟🌟

Many hours have passed, late evening approached the Isles, and the damage caused to the festival was atrocious. There was nothing left and nothing was salvageable once the golden fires set began to die. Plants withered and died from the lack of light and water; stands and decorations left in ruins. There had to be many people who had their lives claimed by the flames, as well as many injured and/or missing. Even after the flames died down, Luz was half awake. The pain had subsided but she felt the burning sensation of her new scar across her eye and cheek every time she tried to get up. 

However, during another attempt to rise to her feet, she heard the sounds of footsteps approaching the area. She ducked down and hid her face and body underneath a charred banner. The figure was a guard left untouched and not injured from the wild fires. He took his time scanning the land around him for any survivors, in search of who his emperor was looking for. However he was unlucky; there was no life to be seen, or so he thought. 

"Nothing..." He muttered to himself. 

Then the guard screeched something to the sky in a foreign language and with a twirl of his finger, shot a bright yellow signal in the air. It looked like a firework except it was shaped with a strange symbol. A circle with two wings and an arrow-like object behind it; the wings flapped while it shined. Multiple more of these weird signal flares lit up the sky where the fireworks once were. 

As soon as the guard left the area, Luz sucked in a deep breath and rose to her feet. She was not in the most desirable shape. Her hair was still smoking from the flames, though they have long since went out. The scar still bled and felt burned, her lip was burned as well, and multiple scratches and bruises marked her arms and legs. Luz also noticed she had the worst headache due to lack of oxygen. She could've sworn she began hearing voices calling her name from the distance. 

To which she was right. 

"Luz.....?" There came the voice again. The human heard their cries, but was too rattled to go investigate. 

Fortunately, the two figures were more than happy to draw in closer and revealed to be non other than Willow and Gus. They both were banged up and burned themselves but thank the gods they weren't too badly wounded. 

"Luz?! Where-OH MY GODS LUZ!!" Willow cried out and ran at Luz and gave her a huge hug. Gus joined in the hug but was far too tired to talk. 

Luz flinched at first but then melted in the embrace. Tears filled the shaken human's eyes, a surge of emotions flooding back. Willow got out of the hug and held her friend at arm's length. 

"Are you okay? What happened?" She fretted. "Oh my stars your EYE!" 

Luz lightly brushed her new wound. "I'm....I must've got it when trying to find Amity."

"Wait what?! You supposed to divert the guards' attention," Willow chastised her friend. "You could've gotten really badly injured. Or WORSE!"

"I-I am really sorry to have you and G-Gus worried," the human apologized, wiping some tears for her eyes. "There...were people running a-and I thought..-I thought one of them was Amity.." 

"Hey you two, I don't mean to be a conversation-ender," Gus intruded. "But what the HECK IS THAT?!" He pointed to the sky and at the yellow symbol up in the air flapping its wings. The two girls looked up and saw what their friend was showing them. Willow adjusted her shattered glasses. 

"Yeah, what IS that?" She wondered. 

"Doesn't look like any illusion work I've seen," Gus pointed out. 

"It looks like....a signal??" Luz observed, squinting her eyes. "That symbol looks awfully familiar??" 

"Come on," Willow insisted. "We should get ourselves healed before we get into any more trouble today." 

But before the trio could move a few inches, they were surrounded by several mysterious figures in dark jackets. They didn't look like anything like the guards that passed by, but they didn't look trustworthy either. Simultaneously, they began to draw their circles and begin a barrage of attacks on some injured children. 

Meanwhile, Eda and King were returning from putting out some fires to the east of the epicenter of the chaos when they stumbled upon three children surrounded by magic wielders. Eda knew who they were and without hesitation tapped Owlbert to their direction and leaped off. 

"Whoa whoa whoa WAIT!" She bellowed. "STOP! THAT'S MY KID!! THAT'S MY KID!!" 

She managed to grab ahold of one of the figures by their wrists and prevent them from casting a spell. The figure gave one hell of a struggle to be set free but even in her age, the Owl Lady had an iron grip on their arms. From across the way, Julius flew and landed by the avoided intrusion. His hair was tangled and cloaked was burned in many areas. 

"CEASE FIRE." He demanded, and the other figures--included the restricted one--destroyed their spells. 

The old bat ran up to the children and went around each of the trio to take note of their wounds. He showed great concern for teenagers he only met earlier that day.

"What are you three doing out here?! Are you hurt?! Where does it hurt??" He pestered them but mostly Luz who was the most banged up. 

"Hey! Pestering the kids is MY job!" Eda grumbled, tearing Julius away to look at her apprentice and friends. She winced at the obvious scar across the Latina's eye. 

"Geez kid! What happened to your eye?!" Luz was silent, still pretty spooked from the earlier attempted attack. 

One of the seven figures came up to the children and threateningly pointed their finger at all the children, ready to perform a restriction spell. It turns out they were one of the teachers from Glandis High. 

"What did I just say about pointing spells at them?!" The Owl lady barked. King snarled at the teacher from inside Eda's long hair. 

"These little ruffians are intruding at the scene of the terrorist attack," the teacher dismissively pointed out.

"Terrorist attack?? They are CHILDREN, Mr. Henge," Julius denounced. 

"W-We were only looking f-for Luz," Willow tried to persuade the group of teachers. "B-But we ended up getting distracted...by THAT." 

All the adults turned to the sky when Willow pointed her finger. They all had shocked faces to see what was in the sky. 

"No." Mr. Henge uttered. 

"What is that?" Luz questioned. "Does it have something to do with signals in the Isles?" 

"That's not just any signal, child," Julius corrected. "THAT is the Emperor's insignia. The symbol of the Emperor's Coven." 

"Th-The Emperor..." Luz paused mid-sentence. "He...He wanted to find me? Eda, I think the Emperor was trying to find ME." 

Eda, shocked, looked to Luz, then to Julius, and then finally to the symbol again. The other adults continued to stare at the insignia lighting up the sky while Julius volunteered to get the teens to safety and provide them healing. 

"Well it's official," Eda proclaimed. "The Emperor's Coven has gone to Hell."

🌟🌟🌟

After that frankly mortifying turn of events, Luz and the others were confined to a healing tent where many others were being treated. Valentine and the delinquent kids were among them, sustaining cuts and bruises. Val himself had huge burns on his ears and left side of his face. But more importantly, one of his legs were fractured and needed a crutch to move about. Barcus was the least injured out of his friends, only having some bruises on his paws. 

Unfortunately, Amity and her siblings were nowhere to be seen. That disappointed and worried the injured Luz who was patched up with a few layers of gauze and one healing spell from a nurse. 

"Worried about Amity?" Valentine asked. He apparently was standing by them with a crutch under one arm. 

Luz nodded. The bat seemed to agree with her. 

"Yeah. Me too..." 

After all of that, Willow was more than happy to have Luz and Gus over for the weekend since the school was closed after the attacks. The trio had fun telling each other over the top stories, try out more of those sprout candies, and anything else witches would do at there friends' houses for a long period of time. The only downside was there were no signs of Amity anywhere, which would always sadden the poor human. Willow and Gus completely understood their friend's concerns for her missing friend but tried to reassure her many a time she was alright. And that seemed to do the trick. 

But things were not as fluffy in the Emperor's castle in the meantime. 

In the middle of the night, a hooded guard still burnt from the fires, wandered up the stairs in silence to his post. The stairs drakes under his weight making him stop ever time to not stir up attention to himself. Approaching the floor his post was on, the guard heard the faint sound of coughing and moaning. There laid a door at the top of the floor, creaked slightly open. The guard decided he would investigate; he flew up the stairs quickly but still took his time as to not cause more creaks in the stairs. 

He reached the top, stopping occasionally to make sure no one was around and peaked his eye through the crack of the door. The room from where he could see was that of a study room, large cases of books and a desk in the center. There was also a majestic wooden clock and a huge bed in the other corner of the room, away from the guard's vision. However, the guard did not have time to admire the decor of these study quarters for there were three figures present in the room. 

One of them being Emperor Belos but he appeared much more sickly and weak. He often was bent over, holding onto something in the room while coughing. At other times, black liquid spilled from beneath his mask where his mouth should be. The second in the room bring Lilith, the pale witch would support him and help him to his chair. 

"Emperor Belos, sir," the witch begged. "You really must limit the usage of your mortem aeternam glyph. It is SHEDDING off your life." 

The masked emperor coughed. "Yes....I am aware." 

"But why so persistent on finding the girl, sir??" A third figure--an unknown hooded figure--questioned. "So persistent you'd end up DYING before grabbing ahold of her?!" 

Another cough and spitting up of black liquid later, Belos attempted to speak. But his voices only turned into more disgusting black liquid that spilled from his mask's underside. Lilith hastily grabbed some towels for her emperor and a pail for him to vomit in. The guard winced at his sticky overlord, but darted way from the door when the third individual peered out. 

"You.....You are very observant, Miss. Lilith...." The emperor breathed out, his voice slightly shaking. "But r-rest assure.....in due time, I sh-shall be in better health..." 

Belos turned to the third info dual in the room who was on one knee watching their ruler with intent concern. 

"M-My prized bounty hunter..." Belos coughed. "Y-You know what our plan is now, correct?" 

"This conversation of ours will not leave this room," the figure confirmed. "And I will not disappoint you in my mission." 

The guard could've swore the scenery around him was growing much more misty and squiggly like static. The fire in the fireplace placed beside Belo's mighty chair was glowing a golden yellow. Things became more static-like the more the three figures talked. 

"Remember the games start next week....." The emperor explained, his voice pained. "The girl...must not live. In order to get to Edalyn." 

"Sir," Lilith hesitantly spoke. "Why must we kill a child to get to my sister? The child merely is just implementing her self into our society now."

Before he could answer Emperor Belos let out another loud cough and waved his hand away when the two disciples of his tried to help him. 

"As I have said....she is....dangerous to our way of life," he answered. "Her otherworldly nature will...surely damage decades of work and organization..." 

The guard darted his head back when he saw the flames become more furious and escrowed the fire burning the books. But the three others did not react in the slightest. Instead as the Emperor spoke, the bounty hunter looked towards the door and began walking towards it with a stern look. Static and fire began to fill the surroundings again. And this time it was much more violent. 

"But there is just one thing that will ruin this..." The Emperor acknowledged. He turned his head to see the guard in the other room looking right at him. 

"Eavesdropping on secret plans is quite rude..."

The surroundings only increased in static volume and the air slowly became juicing with smoke from the golden flames. Emperor Belos pointed his finger towards the startled guard, Lilith lasting out. 

"EMPEROR BELOS, NO-" but Lilith's begs for her leader to stop his attack fell on deaf ears. A dark black circle was carved into the air and shot right at the guard. The guard fell over on his back and instantly died. 

But not before he saw his emperor--his killer--bend over himself and begin to vomit out black sludge once again. However this time, not only did it spill from his mouth, slimy mess seemed to have been leaking from every orfice on his masked face. The scenery began to burn like a picture set ablaze. It looked as if after emptying his body of all its bile, Emperor Belo's body began to shake and quiver and his own body was becoming the static that was also engulfing the scenery. Then came the screams of young women blared out as the scene of this strange occurrence was fading to black. 

Fortunately and unfortunately, this was no mere scenario in real life. This was a nightmare by in the mind of Luz Noceda. 

Once the nightmare was reaching its end, the screams were actually by the human begging and cursing for the dream to end. She screamed and clutched hard onto her bandaged scar, which woke up Willow from her sleep. The plant witch, having prior experience with friends having nightmares such as this, shook her friend's shoulders. 

"Luz! Wake up!!" The young witch attempted to calm and wake her friend. "Wake up, Luz!! LUZ!" 

"AGH!! ¡DETÉN EL DOLOR! NO ME MATES!" Luz cried out at full volume, shooting up awake. 

Her breathing and panicking slowed when she saw her surroundings, how she was not in some dusty old cellar and instead in Willow's bedroom. She wasn't in an emperor guard's outfit and wasn't dead. She was sharing the gardener's bed and was wearing one of her cute nightgowns. Tears began to fill the corners of the teen girl’s eyes as she covered her mouth and looked over to see her friend. Willow was dressed in a dark pine green nightgown with golden trim, she noted, but the most significant part of her look was that her face showed immense amounts of concern. 

"W-Willow," Luz tearfully spoke. "Oh my gosh I'm so happy to see you..." She then winced while she clutched at her bandaged eye. 

"Your scar is hurting again, isn't it?" The plant witch asked in a soft voice. 

Luz nodded, tears streamed down her cheeks. The human leaned up against Willow, Willow patting her friend on the head. 

"I'll get your medicine." She sighed. 

Suddenly, the sound of quick steps running came from the hallway, and the door swung open. A male, pale-skinned witch with pointed ears and hair like Willow's was standing in the doorway, panting heavily. 

"Little sapling, I heard some screaming," the man panted. "Is everything okay?" 

"We're fine, dad," Willow answered. 

"I'm sorry to wake you up, Mr. Park..." Luz meekly whispered. "It was just a nightmare..."

Willow's dad took in a relived deep breath, walked over to the bedside and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. 

"I am so sorry to hear that, kiddo," Mr. Park spoke sadly. "You may stay in for another 45 minutes. But after that you must get ready for the day. It is a school day, afterall." 

Mr. Park offered a hug to Luz and went back out the door. 

"Breakfast at 7:30, kids." Then he officially left. 

"Well. I'm pretty much wide awake now," Luz shrugged. "Maybe we should get ready..?" 

"Good idea," Willow agreed. "But I should probably wake up Gus, too. That guy is one heck of a deep sleeper." 

Willow crawled out of her bed and over to the mattress on the floor. Gus was all curled up in a tiny witch ball holding onto one of Willow's childhood stuffed animals and snored loudly. 

"Hey Guussss," Willow whispered into his friend's ear. "Time to get up~"

"Mhhhh...Willow....no..." Gus groggily replied. He turned over on his side. "Let this little boy rest....he sleepy." 

Willow scoffed and flopped Gus over firmly onto his side. "Augustus. I'm serious." She sure was acting serious, using Gus' full first name. 

"And I'M serious about being sleepy," the illusionist whined. He turned right back over. 

It appeared Willow had to use force for this. Luz was grabbing her special pain pills she had in her bag she brought from the Owl House when she looked over to see her friend make a circle in the air. Out spawned small thorny vines that wrapped around Gus' arms and legs and lifted him out of his bed, and onto the floor. He woke up instantly and scowled at Willow once prying his face from the ground. 

"There." The plant witch sneered. 

"Well pardon me for trying to sleep in," he complained. 

"It's a school day, Gus..." Willow sighed. "We gotta get ready for-OH NO! DON'T YOU DARE GET BACK INTO BED!!"

"You're not my mom, Willow!" Gus argued back. "You're too young to be a mother!" 

Luz got a chuckle of that. She definitely appeared better after her pill and watching her friends' silly shenanigans. Maybe today won't be that bad. 

🌟🌟🌟

Breakfast went by in a snap. Luz, Willow, and Gus were able to eat together with Willow's dads and talk to them about the events from a few days ago before having to get dressed in their outfits and go to school. The trio arrived at a very different looking Hexside Academy of Magic and Demonics. It was being repaired on one side due to the fire from earlier in the week. But other than that, it was still decorated with banners and flags in the trees. Luz was surprised to see the school still being festive. Though she did recall there were 'games' of some sort attached to the 'festival and feast' last week.

The most prominent part of the decorations was a huge banner hung up by the main entrance to Hexside. A light blue banner with very bold golden writing spelling out one sentence: 

"WELCOME GLANDIS AND ST. EPIDERM!"

How peculiar. The human girl tilted her head at this sighed, having no clue what was going on. But it appeared her two other friends did. 

"They're coming here? Today??" Willow gasped. 

"An interesting thing to have up after being attacked at a festival," Luz skeptically said. 

"I wasn't aware that Hexside was hosting the games here!" Gus exclaimed. 

"Hang on, I remember these games being mentioned before, at the festival," the human recalled. "But what in the hey are the 'games'??" 

"Well we're gonna have to go to school to find out," Willow replied. Luz nodded and assumed that she had to wait for answers. 

The trip made their way up the stairs, Luz looking around at the students rains her. She noticed many of them had bandages, burns and other injuries on them from the fire before. Gods, those poor innocent students. Why did the emperor think smoking Luz out in a POPULATED area was a good idea?? 

But the human caught her eye on one particular student. After eating a whole week, Amity was standing in the hall by herself in silence. Her left arm was tied up in a sling, a huge bandage was over her nose, and her leg had a few bandages on itself. She looked awfully tired too, judging by the bags under her eyes. Luz immediately began to grin ear to ear and ran off while Willow and Gus were not looking. 

"...Luz?" Willow finally noticed her friend had gone.

"AMITTYYYYYYYY!!" The young girl cried out whole she ran at her friend. 

Amity looked up to see Luz in the distance and was scared to see how fast she was running. She braced for impact and right she did. Luz wrapped her arms around her very quickly the moment she collided with her buddy. 

"Amity! Thank the stars you are okay! I was super worried that you weren't out during the festival! And i thought there was the fire you got hurt of missing or got killed! I wouldn't stop thinking about you, I was just so so worried and even i suspected the worse to happen to your older siblings and-" the human continued her relieved rambling and raving completely in a different language. 

She was oblivious to the fact she was actually hurting Amity until she heard a whimper clear as day. Luz gasped loudly and disengaged from the hug. 

"Oh no no no!" The Latina gasped. "A-Amity! I'm so so sorry!! I forgot-"

"Hey it's okay..." Amity reassured her crush. "It doesn't hurt that much, Luz." 

"But you're hurt!" The human interjected. "I-I should be been more careful..." 

"It's alright, Luz, calm down," the green haired witch--now blushing--repeated again. "I'm not in THAT much pain. Only when I sleep on it wrong or I hit it against my bedside or if I bend it the wrong way when I stretch or I-" she looked up to see Luz and how she looked as if she was gonna cry. 

"Dammit... I'm not making things better am I?" Amity awkwardly said. 

The distressed human hugged her injured friend once more, but this time, she was much more careful around her sling. The next thing the witches knew was Willow bounding over towards them and wrapping her arms around Amity and Luz as well. 

"Whoa okay! Is it 'hug-your-injured-friend day' or something??" Amity exclaimed, feeling a bit uncomfortable. 

"Can't I worry about my good friend, too?" Willow smirked. "Luz gets to hug you all the time. Why not get some cuddles from me?" 

"Because....I-uh..." Amity needed a change in the subject. She turned to Luz --who was snuggling right next to her cheek--and noticed that the Latina's left eye was all patched up. 

"Whoa Luz! Wha-What happened to your eye?" Amity gasped. 

"Oh this?" Luz wondered. "Ah, well, you see....I may have been trying to find you during the fire and...I uh, burned myself and cut my eye in the process. So now I'll probably have a badass scar in...oh I don't know, a week." 

"You were trying to find me?" Amity's blush grew deeper in hue. "But you could've-You would've-.....it was dangerous!" 

"Oh it was beyond dangerous," Willow scolded the human. "But she was super concerned that you weren't in the healing tent with the rest of us."

"Valentine found me on the second floor of the stadium during the fires," the green witch explained. "He said I was very beaten up when he found me. I got the broken arm from falling from 2 stories. I WAS going to be in the healing tent with you, Willow, and Gus, but the nurses recommended my parents that I needed more emergency help." 

Luz felt as if guilt was punching her right in the gut at 100 miles a second. If the fact the emperor was after her was true, then this whole incident was all her fault. Amity and her friends getting hurt included. 

Luz backed out from the hug. "I am so sorry...." The girl quivered. "This is-I never meant for this to happen to you. To anyone." 

"Luz..." Willow's ears lowered in sadness. 

The bell screamed and was followed by an announcement from Principal Bump himself. 

"ATTENTION ALL STUDENTS AND STAFF OF HEXSIDE. ALL MUST REPORT TO THE AUDITORIUM IMMEDIATELY FOR A VERY IMPORTANT ASSEMBLY." 

"An assembly?" Luz was curious. 

"Come on, I'm positive the assembly will cheer you up," Amity said, grasping at the human's hand. 

Luz, still a little uncertain, nodded sadly and went along with her friends. Willow and Amity were more than delighted to keep their friend safe by grabbing onto each hand until they arrived at the assembly. Too bad Luz has no idea what is going to happen next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Friday (or whatever day it is in your country)! What better way to celebrate the end of the week than look at some more fan fictions. Here is chapter 3 of this story folks. 
> 
> I have been thinking, though. Since things will get violent as the story goes on, do you think I should change the rating from teen to mature? Let me know in the comments! ❤️
> 
> Also: Expect another story in Spinel's Suggestion Story project to be made by the end of this month. Have a good day everyone!


	4. The Cloud of Names

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *voice beginning to break* S-so...Agony of a Witch, huh?? Th-that was fun...can't wait for more-*sobs uncontrollably* 
> 
> This chapter contains: Swearing and.....maybe red flag stuff from a new character?? Idk. ENJOY!

The auditorium was bustling with teachers and students alike. Their outfits clashing with one another while they sat in anticipation to why they were dragged out of class for this. The Hexside Quartet sat down on the right side nearest to the stage. Luz sat in the center of her friends feeling very safe and warm. She flashed a smile at Willow, Gus, and Amity who smiled back in reassurance. 

Amity looked over to see her ex-friend Boscha and her group conversing with Valentine, the latter having a very annoyed look on his face. On all sides of him were perhaps Val's new posse of friends: three regular witches, a four-eyed unicorn with curly black hair, two lizard siblings, a praying mantis-headed girl with the body of a person, and a girl whose head had four large black horns. The two groups standing off reminded Amity of when they all were friends. 

Those were the days, she reminisced. 

All that students present in the auditorium jolted alive from the sudden noise of music and the tapping of a microphone coming from the main stage. Their elderly head of the school, Principal Bump, was waiting somewhat patiently for his students to take their seats. 

"May I have your attention?" He spoke, some students kept taking to each other. "I SAID MAY I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION, PLEASE AND THANK YOU?!" The auditorium finally gave into silence, allowing Bump to speak. 

"Excellent. Ahem. Students and teachers of Hexside Academy of Magic and Demonics, why I bring you hear today is the biggest question perhaps for you all! As the calendar states, it has been five years since a very important set of events have taken place here!" 

Students began to bicker with each other over exactly what in the Boiling Isles he was talking about. 

"Quiet everyone! Quiet!" The auditorium grew silent again. 

"Hmmm right. ANYWAYS! After realizing the time of year it was, Hexside was more than happy to host this year's Boiling Isles Championship Games, a set of three of the hardest coven-chosen challenges. And it is not complete without our two rivaling schools from across the Isles, to join us here today for introductions! So it is my pleasure to announce our rivals to the stand!"

Suddenly the lights cut from the auditorium's ceiling, the students all meld into one pile of confusion. Some were getting freaked out and wondered as to why the power suddenly went out during the presentation. Luz was clearly freaked out due to her nightmare not so long ago; the darkness felt intimidating and discomforting. Then from the ceiling a spotlight shined down onto Principal Bump. 

"Please give a warm and cheerful welcome to Glandis High's top performing students and their Principal, Julius-Jackson Stars!!" 

From a distant corner of the auditorium, a loud opening of wings echoed and a figure flew around the room in a impressive display. His flight occasionally blocked out the nautical light of outside, casting shadows over the bewildered students. Then at the end of his ride through the air, he swooped down dramatically in the middle of the auditorium. The sounds of confused yet fascinated students' voices filled the air. Then just as suddenly, ten figures that stood in the center of the mighty hall lit there faces up with light spells similar to Luz's glyphs. 

Their faces still obscure but were theorized to be the top students of Glandis High. In the middle of the students, Julius cast multiple illusion spells around him that resembled dark blue spheres that shone like ominous lamps in the darkness. They took shape as time went on and spread out across the auditorium. Students got up from their seats to get a better look and the auditorium was becoming lit once again. 

"Is it possible to get adopted in five seconds??" Gus gushed.

"Man, I want HIM to be my dad," Luz said, enchanted by the performance. 

Though from afar, Valentine looked as if he was slightly embarrassed at this gesture; considering his father is part of the rival school. As the spheres allowed blue-hued light to escape into the surroundings, students were already cheering and clapping at the performance. The real lights of the auditorium finally came back on, the sphers fading into the light now coming back on, and the vocal admiration only increased. The ten figures--Julius included--bowed from such a positive response. 

"Good lord these folks get better everytime...." Principal Bump muttered, sounding very jealous. He cleared his throat. 

"Ahem! And for our next AND last introduction, I am pleased to welcome Saint Epiderm's top students and their head-mistress, Havenalia Dagger!"

"What could possibly top THAT performance??" Luz exclaimed quietly. 

"Oh you haven't seen nothing yet, Luz," Amity assured. This made the human girl squeal and stick her eyes even more to the auditorium. 

From the two doors that led to the auditorium, 5 students each--all carrying special staffs not seen before--ran in while a melody was played. They banged their staffs in syncs to the rhythm, two much taller folk in the back preparing to do some spell casting when the crowd enters the room. Among one of them was the Grudgeby champion of his school, and probably Willow's crush. 

"Guys! It's him!!" Gus whisper yelled and tugged at Willow's hood. "Loki Minotonn!!" 

Willow did not pay any attention to her friend's tussling. Her eyes were set on Loki and her face grew warm. 

Loki and another student stood firmly in the center while the others wielding their strange staffs crated melodies that complimented each other and danced about to the beat. Some did flips and spins, others crafted plant spells to add some atmosphere to their performance. And from the center of all the action where Loki and his fellow classmate stood like guards, a gigantic flower popped out from beneath the floor, its petals and leaves sparkled. From inside, St. Epiderm's fabulous principal--Havenalia Dagger--was lying there like a cat across a couch. Loki assisted her by lending a hand to his mistress and brought her down to the ground; the flower shrunk back underground upon her exit. 

"Is it me, or are Glandis and Epiderm's the BEST at public performances??" Luz whispered to Amity. 

"Yep. I heard stories that they overshadow Hexside's performance every time they host at their schools," Amity replied. "Though their outfits are just ghastly! Probably best that I didn't join them." Willow and Gus seemed to share Amity's opinion but Luz was the only one left out, prompting to just shrug along. 

The two teachers introduced from their performances bowed again from the roar of applause and cheers, and met up with Principal Bump who gave them both a shake of the hand and a big hug. 

"It is very nice to see you once again, Hieronymus," Havenalia purred. 

"Ms. Dagger and I are more than happy to see your top student run themselves into the ground," Julius--though positive most of the time--shows his competitive nature. "But hey. Trying is always appreciated~"

Principal Bump growled, but gave a faked smile for the sake of his school's students. He turned back to the crowd after that little excursion to give further announcements. 

"Settle down everyone! Settle down! Now, you all know why you're here sitting in the presence of us three rival schools! It is high time we set up our main picking system to carefully choose who shall compete in this year's Boiling Isles Championship Games!" 

At the clap of his hands, Bump summoned two strpng-bodied students to the stage, together carrying a large box onto the stage. The box instantly opens when placed safely down and reveals a large podium with a flat surface top, and decked out in jewels and crystals. Luz's eyes darted over at sight of this new trinket and was dazzled by its very flashy appearance. 

"Ooooooooh~ So shiny, so ....Boiling Isles-ey," the girl marveled. 

"That's not even the best part," Willow fed her friend's curiosity. "Watch!"

"And with a little help from Mr. Stars here, we shall reveal our age-old system," Bump presented, giving the stage to the old bat. 

"Observe." 

Julius summoned a small sheets of paper, wrote demon his name, and fasted it into the air. Once over the pedestal, it shifted into a small bird-shaped figure and stayed floating in midair above the flat surface of the mysterious artifact. The Glandis Principal repeated this many more times until the papers were all hovering close together in a mass of floating paper. Hexside students Ooed and Ahhed at this marvelous display, the little paper birds flying around but still in the generalized area over the artifact. 

"Did I mention I love magic?" Luz squealed. "I'm not sure if I mentioned that to any of you. Did you know I LOVE MAGIC??" 

Willow giggled at Luz's excitement. "I see you are feeling better."

"What you see here in front of us is a little nifty trick called the Cloud of Names," Bump explained. "A very very VERY old technique for name picking to those worthy of competing in the games. Just write your name, enchant it and when the time comes, you'll see who will be picked. Simple. This artifact here is what allows this enchantment to happen and what keeps the cloud together."

The surge the were already getting excited. Luz, especially. She always dreamed of competing in this world's version of the Olympics, except she'll be old enough to compete. She thought about what exactly these three challenges would be. Some sort of broom race? Fighting a giant griffin to get some gold or something? OR maybe a simple swimming challenge? Luz was an excellent swimmer back home, but no one really knew that with the exception of her mother. 

"This year's games are now open to anyone who is cunning, powerful, and willing enough to-" Bump was interrupted by a teacher scuttling over to him and whispering into his ear. 

"Really?" He said quietly to the teacher. "Wow...Oh, no kidding? Hmmm. Well, alright. I'll see what I can do." That teacher scuttled away, and Bump returned to the microphone. 

"A-Attention students of Hexside, Glandis, and Epiderm," the principal announced. "Due to unfortunate events in the Emperor's council, they are restricting those who can participate by the level of magic they hold. And n-no more than 6 individuals from each coven track can put their name into the Cloud of Names." 

Bump's announcement was met with a larg quantity of complaining, growling and shooting in frustration. 

"Hold on! That's not fair!" One student cried out. 

"Cowards!" One of Glandis' top students hissed. 

"That's rubbish!!" Emira and Edric shouted in unison. 

Luz pouted. "Ah man. Such wasted potential for competition..." Amity frowns at her crush's sad demeanor returning. She clenched harder onto her hand. 

"SILENCE!" Julius roared out, swiftly silencing all the students. "This is Emperor Belos' guidelines and they MUST be respected, regardless of your....feelings towards him." 

The human girl noticed the old bat staring right at her with saddened eyes. Luz's friends all did the same and to each other, as well. Luz hugged against herself, those unpleasant memories flooding back. Everyone else in the auditorium seems to also share her discomfort. 

"There will be a specialty dinner being served here tonight before you will place your paper into the Cloud of Names," Havenalia continued. "You may come along with some friends or family to watch the ceremony but that is it! Those known to wield high magical constitutions shall be the only individuals to participate, and only three of this group will be selected to compete. NO questions asked and NO complaining." 

"Uh, good day, students and staff..." Principal Bump joined in. "You are all dismissed! We expect to see many of you tonight for the ceremony!!"

🌟🌟🌟

Luz and her good friends all sat at the same table when lunch came around. Whole Willow and Gus had a conversation among themselves, Amity and Luz sat close together to talk with each other. Extremely close together, may I add. The young human often held hands with her friend who had blush all over her cheeks. It felt good but also as if Amity was slowing dying from the softness of her crush. But that didn't stop her from striking up conversation about past friendship history. 

"-Whatever happened to you and Valentine, anyways?" Luz wondered. 

"It was like me and Willow back in the day, except for one thing..." Amity replied, fondling her sandwich. "Val and I went back a LONG way, similar to me and Willow. Hell, our relationship reminds me too much of when I was with Willow."

"Exactly like it?" Luz asked. "Wait a second! Does that mean-"

"You are...very close in what you were gonna say," the green-hairs witch admitted. "The difference was...VALENTINE saw MY toxicity and left. We had a huge argument, he flew off, I cried for hours. I was 9 years old." 

"Oh my gods," Luz gasped, tightening her grip around Amity's hand. "Amity I-"

"Don't get me wrong, I missed him SO MUCH, but..." Amity stopped and shifted her attention to Valentine, eating his lunch across the room.

The dashing bat was with his large pack of friends and enjoying their mean spirited jokes and pranks with each other. Val looked over and smiled at Amity, and waved at her. Amity waved back.

"He was smart to leave me and my dumbass behind. His friends are left to be desired, though." The witch sighed. "Well, at least we're on good times."

Luz frowned. "Listen, Blight. I'm glad you're healing your personal stuff with Valentine, but please don't EVER call yourself a dumbass again. Those words especially made towards you and my friends are hurtful and make me feel sad." Her frown curved deeper and revealed her signature puppy eyes.

Amity's face lit up more in hue. "W-Well....I-I guess that w-wasn't my fault for driving him o-off. Thanks, you dork." She only reddened even further. "I MEAN LUZ! Not dork! I shouldn't have called you a-a dork! That's b-bad right??" 

Luz let out a cheerful laugh. "No no no, it's alright! Being called dork never bothered me! Call me whatever you like! That's what friends do after all!" 

Goddammit, Luz. Friendzoned...again. 

"N-Noted." The green-haired witch trembled. 

The doors to the cafeteria swung open and a strange person entered, gaining the attention of the students present at lunch. This guy was very amphibian-like in appearance, not your average witch. He had a dark brown cloak swung over his right arm, a crutch under his free one, and an eyepatch. A necklace with the bone of a sign dangled from his neck. He definitely ending look like any teacher or student at Hexside which prompted him to get all sorts of attention. However, the witch only seemed interested in Luz who was just blissfully unaware she was being stared at by said witch. Only when Amity tapped on her shoulder while eating some soup did the Latina girl look up and immediately feel her stomach tie in knots. 

Principal Bump who was eating with the poker teachers noticed the man and quickly got up. But insured of threatening to get rid of the man, he laughed heartily and welcomed the stranger with open arms. 

"Ah yes! There you are, Reagan!" The old principal laughed. "Good to see you after all the years!!"

The amphibian man growled. "Curse those strange lockers. Nearly tore my cloak off, they did." 

"Yeah we really should check on those later," Bump confessed. "But one thing doesn't add up. What brings you here?" 

"A little seaskull told me about a strange new student here," Reagan explained. "Her name was....Luz? Luz Noceda I think?? 

Luz squeaked and hid between her friends. Reagan squinted over at the hiding girl and approached her. 

"Can we, uh.....help you, sir?" Gus asked, smiling nervously. 

"You're not even trying, Gus..." Amity blinked. 

"Hey, I'm not gonna try anything weird, I just wanna see this girl," Reagan convinced the children to reveal their hiding friend. 

Luz built up the courage to reveal herself from the bodies of her friends surrounding her. The amphibian man took one glance at her and his eyes widened. He lifted his eyepatch, revealing a fake glass eye that swung around in his flesh. 

"A human......" He uttered. He gestured to the girl's ears, in which Luz was hesitant but accepted the stranger to peer at her ears. Round they were, very not much like a witch's. He took one more peek at the young human’s body and walked away. The children were confused as all hell. 

"Okay, what in the Isles just happened??" Willow blurted. 

"Who WAS that??" Gus said perplexed. 

"Reagan 'Lizard-man' Diablo," Amity emphasized, scratching her chin. "A member of the Game Wardens. Part-time rogue witch hunter."

"Ooooooooh dear here I go..." Luz groaned, slinking into her school outfit's hood. 

"I swear to Belos, Amity, you and your family are walking field guides," Willow said in awe. The plant witch thought about it for a second. "Most of your family." 

"When it comes to being the daughter to the Head of the Abomination Coven, you know some stuff," the abomination witch shrugged. "Even though I never ask to learn anything like that. Also, Luz. Y-you...can come out of your hood now. He's gone." 

A little tap on the head alerted Luz to peak out her face from deep within her hood. She made a shifty look just to be sure that weird witch hunter was gone and poked herself fully out. After that little run in, the human witch felt more confident in tonight. She may not be so powerful in her glyph abilities, it's the least she could is support the people who are. Who knows? Maybe things will change. 

🌟🌟🌟

Even when night came down over the Boiling Isles like a mighty black and star-speckled blanket, Hexside was perhaps the only building in Bonesborough still lit up. The cafeteria was lit up by torches blue like the ocean and glistened freely. The students from all three rivaling schools were in the cafeteria savor in countless cooked foods for their special ceremonial dinner. Some others watched the most powerful students in the schools write their names into tiny papers provided to them enchant it and watch as the papers food into themselves and join into the bloated magical entity that was the Cloud of Names. Luz--aggressively chewing into the leg of a cooked cockatrice--watched intently as Amity was hesitant to write her name. That was when Viney approached. 

"Kid, you've been staring at a paper with your name on it for the last 12 minutes," Viney acknowledged. She took a bite out of some meat. "Wowwied 'bout shumfing?"

"I...I don't know if I can do this," Amity stuttered, fidgeting the pen in her hand. "I know my p-parents said it'll give y-you respect...b-but they never ASKED me what I think! What do I do? These games-...they're-" 

"Who carsh whut yer parensh fink??" Luz huffed. She gulped down the meat. "On one hand, I would LOVE to see you in action out there, competing! And being all athletic and stuff! But if you are worried about getting in hurt, don't do it! Do what YOU want!" 

Amity looked into the eyes of a very serious Luz. It's too bad the human did not understand why these games made her so...tense, to put it simply. 

"Luz, I don't think you-" while the green-haired witch tried to explain, she was interrupted by Valentine and his posse approaching the Cloud of Names cheering and chanting the bat's full name. 

"Come ON, Stars," one girl pestered. "DO IT!" 

Valentine sighed and shook his head whilst smiling and enchanted his little paper. It rose ever so gracefully into the air and collided with the many other papers in the Cloud of Names. Cheers from after, a collection of students celebrated, Valentine bowed while his friends tossed him about playfully. Luz and Viney were polite and also clapped and cheered for him. Amity did so too, but quickly stopped to look down at her named paper. Next she rose to her feet with paper and pen in hand. Willow, Gus, Luz, and Viney all watched in astonishment as their friend who originally refused to join in the championship, rise to her feet and approach the pedestal. Amity then turned to face Luz. 

"Luz, you don't know exactly what I have coming to me in the championship," she started. "But, I'm glad you're confident in me."

She enchanted the paper, still smiling right at Luz, and off into the body of papers it went. People around her cheered and hurrahed, especially Amity's little group of friends. Even Boscha who was standing from afar seemed impressed with her ex-friend's courage. 

"WHOO HOO, GO AMITY!!" Luz adorably cheered. Willow and Gus flashed happy smiles and clapped for the green-haired witch. Amity didn't even care she was blushing at that moment. Viney gave Amity a firm pat on the back. 

"A brave move, I wish you the best of luck," Viney said sincerely. 

Amity nodded. "I appreciate it." 

The small group of friends cheered and celebrated with pieces of assorted pastries amongst themselves. Just then, the doors of the cafeteria opened, and Loki Minotonn marched in, beside him was his father. Like father like son, their tied hair were draped over the shoulder and both had serious cold expressions plastered on their faces. A little too similar to each other. The whole room grew silent upon their arrival. But Loki only had one goal. 

The tall St. Epiderm student stopped right in front of the pedestal and the Cloud of Names, chucked his enchanted paper up into the air and watched it join with the other swirling pieces of paper. Every cheered wildly with the furious sounds of clapping not and whistling added into the fray. The human was very enthusiastic when it came to cheering, and she furiously clapped and even whistled one time. Amity and the others were distracted so much they didn't realize a student from Glandis stopped to stand very closely to Amity. 

"Bold of you to get yourself killed rather than stay with mother and father," the student gawked. Amity looked over and noticed the student being a pink-dragon girl with slicked back hair, webbed ears and one tooth protruding upward from her jaw. 

"Amity." The dragon hissed while smiling evilly. 

"Gilda." Amity's words sounded poisonous. 

"Strange that YOU are considered more powerful than your little human buddy," Gilda snickered, looking directly at Luz. The human pointed to herself when she noticed the dragon staring into her eyes.

"I'd rather have it be me and not her," Amity rolled her eyes. Luz--able to hear the conversation--felt touched and squeaked happily. 

The dragon huffed and threw her paper into the Cloud of Names. A crowd of students applauded her enthusiastically, Gilda forming an arrogant smile. 

"See you rotting among the corpses, Blight." She punched the green-haired witch's shoulder and began walking. 

She stopped, however, when she was inches away from the human, and then said. "Nice scar." The dragon intentionally brushed her tail against Luz's leg and walked off to a group of other girls.

"She seems.....nice," Luz's smile was forced and it REALLY showed. 

"Ever since I used to play in Grudgeby, she's been a real creep," Amity groaned. "Gilda is in the Bard Track at Glandis, a real teacher's pet but also a pain in my ass." 

"She's giving all sorts of red flags to me," Willow acknowledged. 

"Wait a second-" Luz remembered something Gilda said from before. "'Rotting among the corpses'? Amity? What is she talking about?" 

Amity sighed and looked sternly at Luz. "Luz, listen. These games...they are no where near as similar to your human world's 'Olympics' or whatever they're called. Trust me. They are NOT for the faint of heart." 

"But I told you you didn't have to compete, right?" The human witch argued. 

"I remember, but I want it to be me out there and not you," Amity demurred. "You've been hurt enough..." 

Luz smiled warmly. "Hey, if you're picked, please be extra careful. Don't want to lose a friend." 

Amity suddenly began to laugh. "I don't really have a choice. But, thank you." 

Edric and Emira burst into the scene, seeming pretty happy for some reason. Both in their hands they held papers and the other tiny potion each. Students were cheering and shouting their names, others laughed. That drew the attention of Luz and her friends who had mixed emotions reading the madness. 

"I knew our group was lacking spice," Luz chuckled. "What brings you two here??" 

"We are competing, duh," Edric said tartly. He bumped Luz's hip with his in good nature.

"But we got an idea on how to do it, don't we brother?" Emira added. 

Her twin nodded swiftly. "We will surely be great participants this year!" 

"That is not going to work~" Willow objected in a sing-songy voice. The twins scoffed at each other and surround themselves around the downer witch. 

"Oh really?" Emira sneered. 

"And what makes YOU think we can't, gardener?" Edric sassed. 

"You see that on the pedestal?" Willow pointed to a small ring wrapped around the pedestal. "That spell senses a witch's magical essence, crafted by the three principals themselves. And from what I've seen from you two, you're only good enough to make decent disguises." 

From afar, Luz and Amity looked at each other, eyes wide, and attempted to stifle their laughter. 

"Well, that's where you're wrong, buddy," Edric smoothly said, stroking the plant witch's cheek. 

"Ed and I made these potions," Emira explained. 

"It'll give us a much needed boost in our magical abilities," Edric included. 

"And if we drink them together, we'll be perfectly balanced in magic!"

"It's the perfect scheme!" The twins said in unison. 

"Hah. I doubt you'll be able to get your names in the air." Amity challenged. 

"You'll see..." Edric glared at his younger sibling. 

The twin siblings took leach other by the hand, drank their potions and slowly but surely approached the pedestal. They noticed they haven't been punished for it yet and encouraged the other students to cheer them on. And cheered on they were. Even though Luz knew they will never be selected, she wanted to be supportive and cheered along. Pretty soon the twin Blights crumpled up their papers and threw them into the air. The two papers danced around the Cloud of Names for a few brief moments and final joined in the living paper mass. The twins were dumbfounded that these weird potions actually worked and high-dived each other (taught to them by Luz) while every student around them celebrated their perfect scheme. 

Unfortunately, not a even second later, the Cloud of Names flared up and split apart all its little papers. Pretty soon, tiny bird-shaped pieces of named papers began chasing Edric and Emira around the cafeteria while everyone watched. Laughter and wheezing filled the air. The twins were being poked at, prodded at, and worst of all, humiliated by everyone watching.

"Ugh, you idiot!" Emira whinged. "The potions were useless!"

"Well, I'm sorry," Edric sassed. "I wasn't aware the Cloud of Names had a POTION DETECTOR IN IT!" 

The sibling pair were not stopped mid chase and slapping and attacking each other. Amity was having so much fun with this public humiliation, granted they didn't always deserve. Lots of students got there scroll phones out to rape the playful Aeneas going on in front of them. Luz was have a ball, laughing loudly and joking alongside Willow. Willow was still looking at her Plant spells book but seemed to love the chaos as well, judging by the look on her face. 

"Oops, I must've forgot to mention the Cloud of Names retaliates if it sense someone with a lower than recommended magic essence," she nonchalantly said. 

"You are one bad girl, Willow," Luz winked. 

The pain in her scar came out of nowhere, casing the human girl to wince and clutch it again. 

"Luz? You okay?" Willow yelped. 

Then came a small tap on Luz's shoulder. She flinched before looking up and found that it was the stranger again. Reagan, was it? He held out a small jar full of tiny orbs in his hand. He gusted her to take one, for some reason. 

"Got a pain, take one of these," he convinced the girl. "It helps." 

Luz shakily took one of the tiny medicines and popped it in it her mouth and then swallowed. It was a miracle how the medicine quickly did its job and vaporized the pain that once seared Luz's eye. Though still skeptical of this man, she turned to Reagan and gave a empathetic smile. 

"Gracias." She said gratefully. "Er, I mean, thank you." 

Confused for a second, Reagan flashed a half smile and walked away from the scene. Luz continued to think very mixed-like about him, but at least he was generous enough to lend her some of his medicine. Which is weird, since witches don't necessarily need medicine to be healed. They got magic for a reason. Then again, it was a friendly gesture and the young human seemed to very much like that. 

🌟🌟🌟

Midnight arrived not too long after all the students returned to their homes. The cafeteria was dead quiet, the only sounds being the wind outside and the swirling of papers in the Cloud of Names. However, the whole school was not left entirely empty. A figure donning a dark blue cape barged their way into the cafeteria with a pen in hand. They to their time scanning the area for any guards or other intruders, and when the coast was clear, they continued forward and entered the cafeteria. They left not even a few minutes later lacking that pen in hand and stormed out into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wowie! That's A LOT of hits! Thanks for over 500+ hits, everyone! Y'all are so nice and supportive of my weird ass crossover fan fiction. Expect more Owl House updates, as well as other fanfic updates in the future! Have a great day everyone! ❤️
> 
> Also, yes. Agony of a Witch BROKE me!! MY POOR BABY GIRL LUZ WAS SOBBING! 😭


	5. The Lesson and the Mistake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Vomiting, harm towards an animal, swearing

🌟🌟🌟

The next morning was an average day in Hexside. Except for the fact that everyone, staff included, seemed to be very antsy because of last night. There was all this talk about who will possibly be chosen to compete in the Boiling Isles Championship Games, betting on many and mocking others. It was all mixed results and talk. But for now, it was halted class for Luz, Willow, and Gus. The serpentine teacher was in the middle of a history lesson talking about the lineage of the Healing Coven's Leader when Reagan Diablo stepped into the room. He was still wrapped in his cloak but wore a dark brown and gold suit that was Victorian in appearance. He was eyeing the human who was writing profusely in her notes before talking to the teacher. 

"Uh huh?" The teacher spoke in a whisper. He listens very carefully to what the amphibian witch was saying. "Ah yes. I'll talk to them." The serpentine teacher walked back up onto the platform and faced his very bored looking students. 

"Your attention, students," he started. " I have established a change in plans. From now on, your regular history class with me will be replaced with hands-on learning about magic and spells with Mr. Diablo." 

The students did perk up but still seems very unsure of what to think; they all looked to one another in confusion. 

"And you will be outside." The teacher added. That seemed to do the trick. 

"OOOH! We get to learn about spells outside?! Awesome!" Luz squealed with delight. 

"An outside lesson, huh?" Willow squinted her eyes at Reagan. "How odd." 

"I, for one, am all for working with magic outside," Gus opined. "I've been meaning to test out one of my more complicate performance tricks but never got much space. I saw this is a win-win!" 

Turns out the history room was not just the only class Diablo visited. He had gone around to each room no matter the track or subject and selected a few students to join him outside for a more "physical" lesson. The day was cloudy and dark but wasn't raining, thank the Isles; It was cold but not unbearable either. The group of students randomly selected by Reagan were all gathered in the courtyard right near the Grudgeby field. The amphibian man was provided a chalkboard but his magic would do the rest. 

"Hello children." He said coldly. "Reagan Diablo. Member of the Game Wardens Council to Emperor Belos. Part-time Rogue Witch Hunter. You know the drill. Bump asked me to teach you this stuff so I'm going to do that no questions asked-end of story-GOODBYE!! ....any questions?" 

Silence came over the students, even when Reagan was eyeing them. 

"Well now I can begin, I suppose. The Emperor's Coven and your school systems think I'm not able to show you or demonstrate these spells. Well I think OTHERWISE! You young witchlings SHOULD learn what dangers really are out there in this magical nightmare-fuck world, ESPECIALLY IN THIS DAY AND AGE!!" 

The sudden change in his attitude caused Luz some discomfort, as did the other students feel the same. Reagan clapped his hands together and drew a bullet list using his magic. 

"Now can any of you young witchlings tell me the most dangerous spells? Or at least three of them?" The amphibian man walked around the quiet students. "Or better yet, who can tell me if it's appropriate to take a picture and type hurtful comments about me ON THEIR SCROLL PHONE AT THE BACK OF THE CLASS, MISS BOSCHA??"

Everyone gasped and all simultaneously swiveled their heads to the back of the crowd. Boscha WAS indeed texting on her scroll phone and updating her Pinstagram as we speak, she took a picture earlier of Reagan when he was walking around them. The message underneath his photo was rather mean and frankly, very insulting for an amphibian witch. Reagan twirled his slimy finger in the air and off Boscha's scroll levitated over to him. He took a quick peak and snorted before summoning a small charcoal-black box.

"Aaand away your trinket goes," Reagan muttered to himself. 

"H-Hey! My dad spent a fortune getting that for me!" Boscha complained, but then suddenly had to dodge a sharp object flying at her thrown by the teacher. Some other students ahead of Boscha also sucked to avoid the hurled object. 

"Yikes....." Gus quietly whispered to Luz. The Latina nodded in response. 

"Now, could any of you take this SERIOUSLY and explain to me all, or at least THREE of the countless powerful curses known to the Isles?" Reagan scanned the sea of students he had in his presence, his intimidating look in his eye caused a few students to raise their hands hesitantly. Amity, Luz, and Willow were among those few. 

"How about....Miss Park?" Reagan approached the plant witch, students moved out of his way like a gate of children. 

"Could you tell me what the most powerful spells, or should I say CURSES, are called? And why they're called that?"

Willow gulped; Luz gave her a nervous thumbs up and the witch took in a deep breath before she began. "W-Well, Mr. Diablo, th-there are many curses. B-But the most powerful ones are called t-the Titan's Monstrosities....S-Several per coven, a-and even parts of the W-Wild Magic category, I-I think." She adverted her professor's gaze, blushing. 

"Go on. And WHY are they called the 'Titan's Monstrosities'?" Reagan dragged out the answer. 

"B-Because they're....considered a monstrous...a-and abominable s-spell to use," Willow added anxiously. "S-so monstrous, th-they can-"

"-give the target AND the caster lifelong suffering as well as physical, mental, and spritual scarring even past the point any time in the Conformatorium can fester! CORRECT!" The amphibian man responded rather aggressively. He furiously wrote that down in his onboard using his magic. 

The amphibian turned back to his students and began speaking again. "As you can see why we are outside, I shall be demonstrating a few of the 'Titan's Monstrosities', but do be careful. They are not to be used by any of you, obviously. Now-" he slapped his hands together. "-Give me one from any coven. The Coven's have many spells AND curses to choose from so don't be shy." 

Slowly but surely, hands began to raise into the air, some students were shaking in fear of getting pelted by a sharp object like before. Reagan appeared a little disappointed in the small collection of answers. 

"Oh come now! You are braver than this!" Reagan scoffed. "I guess I'll have to pick one of you myself." He once again walked around the students with their hands raised; as he walked other students slowly raised their's as well. And of course he had his eyes on star student Amity Blight who was sweeting slightly. 

"Miss Blight." The sound of Reagan's gruff voice made Amity squeak and turn her head towards the man. "Your father is head of the Abomination Coven, correct? Had he ever mentioned any spells or curses from that coven?"

Amity nodded. "Yes. He has....There IS one I know of. I think it's called.....The Controlling....Trance Curse." 

"Ah. Not bad, Miss Blight," Reagan widened his eyes. "That is indeed one Abomination Coven-related curses. Now let us see if you know it." 

"Excuse me?" Amity asked shakily.

"Tell us more." 

"Oh! That's right." A little embarrassed, the younger witch cleared her throat. "The Controlling Trance Curse is similar to...what you do when commanding abominations...except it can affect on ANYONE." 

"Yes yes yes VERY GOOD!" Reagan proudly confirmed. "And now, all you have to do, Miss Blight, is watch as I demonstrate this spell." 

Amity, particularly confused, slinked back into the crowd while the amphibian man pulled out a small creature from his pocket. A tiny mouse with eyes fused to its back and tail scampered around in his hand while he cooed to it. 

"A mouse?" Luz wondered. 

"Let us begin, little one," Reagan towered his finger and it encircled the mouse. "Mouse, LEAP!" 

With barely any hesitation, the mouse leaped unnaturally from the palm of his hand and onto a student's face. It scampered around and went in-and-out of their uniform while the student shrieked. The others around them were laughing and guffawing like they were watching the funniest stand-up show in the world, Reagan was also among the laughing. 

"You got something on your face, Gus," Luz snickered. 

"Wha-" Gus looked to see that the same mouse had leaped off its last host and was crawling around the young illusionist's hair. "AAAAH NO! NOT THE HAIR!" Luz, Amity, and Willow were laughing even harder now. 

"Watch out Luz!" Reagan playfully called, guiding his finger in the direction of the distracted human. The human girl quickly reacted to the mouse gliding from Gus and right on to her face. She cried out and scurried around while trying to get this little insufferable vermin off her. Her friends were laughing at her in a playful manner but meanwhile Boscha and some of Valentine's friends were making fun of the human was more spiteful. 

Reagan caught onto this and summoned the rodent to jump over multiple teens' heads and land right on Boscha's. The three-eyed witch screeched and fell onto the floor while the mouse ran up and down her scalp. Reagan's laughter only increased while the other students did as well. 

"Serves you right!" Gus said between gasps of laughter. 

"Don't assume this is all a mouse can do under the controlling spell," Reagan added through us own laughter. "I can command this little beasty to...oh I don't know, run up the side of the school-" he tiered his finger and up the mouse went. The students watched in awe. "-bite another creature-" the little beast bit a seaskull. "-crash against a window." 

Reagan's sudden shift in tone when he caused the mouse to bump hard against one of Hexside's windows ceased all laughter from the students. Luz watched in horror as Reagan dragged the hurt mouse over to a puddle of boiling water. 

"Drown itself? Boil itself alive?" The amphibian man dangled the mouse over the puddle but in the end dragged it back over into his hand. The students were full of so many mixed emotions after Reagan toyed with their amusement and the fact almost killed an innocent rodent. 

"This spell may seem harmless and rather fun to many a beginning witch," Reagan lectured. "But be wary, whether you are victim or caster. This spell can make you do things you've never fathomed of doing without realizing it." He circled the siteents like a predator to its food for a good few laps. Luz could see in Amity's face that she regretted answering that question. 

"But you're not safe from harm as a caster either. Those you cast that have a strong will may not be so easy to tame and control, and perhaps even retaliate against you in some sort of 'semi-mind controlled' daze. Watch closely." He took his finger to encircle another student who almost immediately countered his action with a plant-based spell. Its thorns sliced at Reagan's hand so the man would flinch his hand back. 

"As you can see." The old amphibian cleared his throat. "Oh. It appears another young spirit wishes to join in." 

Reagan slowly made his way towards the tall boy that tried his best to keep his composure. He wasn't exactly failing but wasn't succeeding either. 

"Your name, boy?" The old witch asked sternly. 

"J-Jerbo. Jerbo Stillkin." The boy answered. 

"Ah I see," Reagan stroked his smooth chin. "You have a curse on your mind, Mr. Stillkin?" 

"As a matter of fact, I do," Jerbo affirmed. "My...uncle once told me of a curse...about a mind swap. Or mind immersion...whatever it does." 

"You have just given me the 'wild magic' curse- the Psyche Immersion spell," Reagan acknowledged. "A spell giving a caster a chance to experience what is going on in another's mind. Would you do me the honors and help participate, Jerbo?" 

The amphibian man lend a hand to Jerbo who reluctantly joined his and exited the group. The boy felt a surge of magic enter him and his mind molded from said surge to meet the amount of magic. Reagan stopped backward after the spell was casted and waited to observe what exactly will happen. Jerbo was silent at first, his eyes were still wide open and glazed over with a magical blue-white gloss. However, he began to see much more harmful and violent memories swirl in his head, cussing him to breathe more labored breaths. The boy then bent down while clutching tightly to his heads and the breathing grew more rapid. Whatever memories or thoughts he was experiencing now were downright traumatizing. 

"...Jerbo?" Viney uttered from behind. She approached to the side and tightly grapes onto his shoulder. "Jerbs??" She shook him but no reaction other than his already quaking body and fast breathing. 

The longer he was experiencing Reagan's memories, the faster his breathing and whimpering got. He was full on hyperventilating like he was in the middle of a terrible panic attack. And worst of all was no one did anything. Viney grew scared for her Lang friend, attempting many a time to snap him out. Reagan, in the meantime, stared blankly at Jerbo who was just suffering from this curse. That was when two students in the crowd decided to intervene. 

"Stop it!" Willow cried out. "You're hurting Jerbo!!" 

"Stop hurting him," Luz demanded. "Can't you see he's suffering?!" 

The begging and demanding continued until Reagan reluctantly sighed, yanked Jerbo's wrist and broke the spell. The lanky boy let out a choked up gasp and fell backwards into the crowd, Viney grabbing onto him to prevent him from falling any further. His breathing had thankfully slowed but his eyes remained painfully open like he's seen a ghost. Which is not too out of the ordinary given what had he just seen. Viney began rubbing her hand in circles into Jerbo's back as he began to cry. However no noises came out from his mouth. 

"Shh, you're safe, Jerbs..." She comforted Jerbo who was gripping hard in her arms. 

"Mortifying is it not-" Reagan paused a second, grabbing hard onto his frontal lobe. "The....Urgh, Psyche Immersion spell had been banned from ALL Coven's due to...connectors to migraines, straining of magic...and occasional memory loss. Ugh. Damn these headaches." He blinked hard a few times before facing the student again. 

"Could you...remind me of what spell we just did?" Reagan seemed to have this temporary loss of memory, just like he said. 

"The Psyche Immersion Spell. S-sir..." Luz answered, her voice went from loud and demanding to hushed. 

Reagan blinked again. "Ah yes, now I remember." He rubbed his eyes and twirled his fingers to summon an ice pack. The pain received once applying some much needed cold to his headache. The scared teensjust plainly watched in silence after being traumatized from those two spells. However, they did not know that wouldn't be the last spell they'll learn that day. 

"Now that my migraine has settled, perhaps we shall cover one more curse, hm?" He monotonly suggested. His eyes finally laid on the pretty shaken Latina cowering the back. The same cowering girl he met yesterday. Like repeated events, he stepped through the waves of children to make his way to Luz. 

"Miss....uh, Noceda? Am I saying that right?" Reagan asked, and Luz nodded. "Okay good. I don't suppose YOU have any knowledge of dangerous spells. Any curses? No?" 

Luz did not dare to speak a word, she stared back at her teacher's cold, intimidating eyes. She could've swore they glistened over with a light blue hue for a split second, like an illusionist's magic but she didn't want to dwell on it for any longer. 

"I....I have two......" Luz wavered. 

"Pardon?" Reagan readjusted his eyepatch and stopped backwards. 

"I know two curses....or at least, one of them is a curse," the human sucked in some air. "Th-the first is...a spell where you can t-turn into some of-" she paused.

Is this really a good time to talk about Eda's curse, she thought harshly to herself. Or perhaps I could bend it enough to keep it partially a secret. 

Luz started back up again. "-turn into a b-bird monster...beast thing. And then the other, makes you spit...black bile. I think? I saw it in a dream...."

"A dream, child?" Reagan blinked, looking thorough surprised. 

"Wait, that's what you were scared of that night?" Willow wondered, staring at Luz's clearly uncomfortable look. 

"Well...unfortunately I cannot talk much or even demonstrate the first curse you speak for, young human," Reagan regretfully said. "The Curse of Feather and Mud was the only scrollbound curse of its kind, and it has been lost to time."

The human sighed a long breath of relief. Good, Eda's secret is still safe. 

"However." Luz's breath hitched again from Reagan's sudden solemn interruption. "I am...unfortunately able to show the last spell." 

He did not hesitate to whirl his fingers around again, Luz noticing the circle was pitch black, and the beam of darkness following it shot right through the mouse Reagan once was controlling. It laid on its back with all four limbs curled in the air, tiny black veins running from its hind legs to its neck. Luz stared at the unfortunate vermin dead on the floor with an expression of someone who just experienced their whole family's massacre. Others around her shared the same pain. 

Just then, Reagan's face grimaced and a small stream of black bile as dark as night spilled from his mouth and stained his suit and hands. He nonchalantly wiped the corners of his mouth while the children groaned and grimaced themselves. 

"Ugh......great. Now I'M gonna spill bike from my mouth," Gus gagged. 

After wiping more at his lips, Reagan went on to finish his lecture. "Let this be a warning to those with little knowledge of the more illegal magics of the Boiling Isles. You are all dismissed."

Near the end of the class, all students unlucky to experience these terrible lessons wandered to their next classes (or lunch) in complete deafening silence. Some muttered to each other but only very sparingly. Luz and her friends, on the other hand, were quite the opposite. 

"Awful. Downright disgusting!" Willow growled. 

"Welp. There goes the rest of my innocence, down the drain..." Luz trembled, letting out a chocked laugh. 

"How could he even FATHOM that practicing illegal curses to a bunch of SCHOOL STUDENTS would be a good idea?!" The plant witch continued to complain. 

"I...don't know," Gus said slowly. "But it surely has left an...impression on one of our own." 

The illusionist pointed to the still she'll shocked Jerbo sitting alone by one of the windows lining Hexside's walls. He held a thousand yard stare while looking out into nothingness. From the wayside, Viney sat down right next to her friend wearing a very concerned look. 

"Hey. You alright?" The witch asked. 

"Huh?" Jerbo redirected his gaze onto Viney. "Oh, I um...I'm fine. Just...stared off for a second." 

"You really saw some crap, huh?" Luz said empathetically. The lanky boy simply nodded. 

From behind the small crowding group of friends, Reagan appeared once again to check up on Jerbo after that pretty mortifying event. The old witch hunter was met with scowling eyes. 

"Calm your stares, children, I'm only here to check up on the boy," Reagan assured, pushing the children aside. Luz was the only one who softened her expression. 

"You alright son?" Jerbo stared up at the amphibian' face with a haunted glare. "You look unwell. Come with me." 

The young witch took the witch hunter's hand and rose to his feet rather quickly. He was carried off to wherever was in that direction, probably the healing track room or even more professional help. Luz was uncertain whether she saw Reagan's eyes glisten with that light blue color again or she was just imagining things. After Viney left the group, the Hexside quartet (minus Amity) went on their way once again. However they were long from being done talking about Reagan. 

"He confuses me." Luz said plainly. 

"Who? Reagan?" Gus asked. 

"Reagan! I have no idea whose side he's on, and whether he's a good-natured guy OR some sort of sociopath! His personality changes with every moment suitable for it!"

"It really is odd," Willow nodded. "It's like he's struggling to keep his composure." 

"I don't think it's a big deal, but by the GODS, he's a mess of traits," the Latina continued. "And the glisten in his eyes rub me the wrong way."

"Glisten? What are you talking about?" Willow tilted her head. 

Luz opened her mouth but stopped. "Y'know what, never mind." 

Up ahead there were a large clot of students surrounding a singular paper in the wall. Being her ever curious self, Luz walked faster than her two friends and pushed by many students until she was facing a colorful poster. It read in bold words: "PICKING CEREMONY TONIGHT AT MIDNIGHT. PLACE YOUR BETS AND ENJOY THE CEREMONY; FAMILY AND FRIENDS WELCOME." 

Oh that's RIGHT! The Cloud of Names was a real thing, and so were the Boiling Isles Championship Games. Luz was too distracted by today's lesson that she completely forgot the fact the picking was tonight. She wondered if Eda ever participated in the games a long while back, considering the spacing between each championship was half a decade; It was most likely. Luz was also super excited that her good friends and a chance to be picked and be recognized as a hero to Hexside. Though her nervousness was very peculiar. However, the girl did understand this was the BOILING ISLES, and NOT Earth. Anything could happen in this games, but she was too clueless to wonder what.

And as if on cue, Amity stepped forward to read the poster. She quietly scanned the poster and then gulped hard. 

"Nervous?" Luz finally spoke. 

Amity responded by yelping and flinching backward. "SWEET WAILING STAR, Luz! H-How are you so quiet?" 

"Oh geez! Sorry for spooking ya, Amity," Luz waved her hands around in the air. "I was asking if you were nervous about something." 

"The games are a BIG deal, Luz," Amity explained. "I DO have the right magical abilities, but with how threatening the challenges are and the low probability that I'll even survive challenge one, it's...of course it's super stressful." 

Luz hummed in response. 

"I really really hope Val will be picked instead. Which is possible. I mean! Look at how popular he is!! Compared to my status, he's ROYALTY!"

"I'd be glad cheering either of you on," Luz shrugged. "Though, you would be AMAZING at the games since you have athletic skills! Valentine would probably just charm his way into winning." 

Amity chuckled. "You think me as athletic? You're really missing out, human. But you should be glad neither I or Val might not get picked. You have NO IDEA what's going to come." 

That was a big understatement, a good one but still a big one. Luz and the other students from all three schools were oblivious to what will happen this faithful night. 

🌟🌟🌟

Midnight came over the Picking Ceremony, many people were gathered outside in their own little friend groups. The Cloud of Names swirled in the air while mood lighting from blue torches lined the gathering area. Many of the students and their families sat patiently in bleachers, all watching the splendor that was the Cloud of Names swirling around in a collective ball of papers. Some other students did not care for the artifact (for now) and chose to talk with their friends and family instead while waiting. In the front of some bleachers, the Hexside Quartet had brought their own friends and family, and were all talking to one another about many a subject. Luz was glad King decided to tag along but was confused as to why Eda did not show up too.

"Where's Eda?" Luz asked. 

King, who was stuffing his face with chips, swallowed and turned to Luz. "Eh, she said she had errands to do. More elixir to get. Y'know, whatever." 

"Elixir...odd." Luz said suspiciously. 

"Hey um....Ish the cupcake killer ushually lerk like she'sh about to pash out?" The demon wondered, chewing more chips. 

The human turned around and saw the green-haired witch sitting alongside her two older siblings with an expression that did in fact make her look like she'd faint any second. 

"Yeah. She has been....stressed out ever since she placed her name in it the Cloud of Names," Luz sighed. "I wish I could take her place. But unfortunately, I don't have enough magical strength to actually compete. Shame..."

"I think it's best you aren't powerful enough to participate," Willow--who was with her dads--chimed in from the bleachers. "Trust when I say you really DON'T wanna get picked."

"Sure..." 

"Hey Luz," King spoke. "Why not bring cupcake killer-"

"AMITY." Luz corrected harshly. 

"Yeah yeah okay," King rolled his eyes. "Why not bring Amity some of these chips I bought? They are sure to put a smile on her face!" 

Luz brightly smiled. "Oh my gosh King, that's perfect! You really are warming up to here!" 

After planting another kiss on the demon's head--a small excited squeak exiting from his mouth--she snatched the chip bag and bound her way over to check up on Amity. She stopped when she saw none other than Mrs. Blight alongside Edric and Emira talking to the girl. 

"Oh come now, dear," Mrs. Blight purred. "Don't look so shaken. If you were to get picked, feel grateful about it! You would be considered a spectacle to us! A hero! Is that not what you want?" 

"Come on, mom," Edric pleaded. "Do you really think this is a good idea??" 

"Mittens doesn't want any of this," Emira said alongside her twin. "She clearly is not emotionally ready!" Amity shakily nodded. 

"Look, children. I know it is hard to accept being gifted," Mrs. Blight huffed. "But this could really help strengthen your place in the world. Think about it, and change that attitude. Your father and I are hopeful that we shall see greatness from you~" 

"More like you want me dead...." Amity muttered very very quietly. 

"WHAT was that?" The older lady cocked a brow. 

"N-nothing, mother," Amity squeaked, retreating into her sister's loving arms. 

Mrs. Blight gave an approving but haughty hum, patted her daughter on the head and marched off to meet her husband. When the tension disappeared, Luz stepped away from behind the bleachers and walked over to the Blight's. Emira spotted the human girl first, smiling widely. 

"Good timing, cutie~" Emira called out but her happy attitude faltered "Amity isn't doing good. She's definitely gonna need you by her side, especially when picking comes around."

"Ooooooooh, are those CHIPS?" Edric said childishly. "Those are so delicious! Mother and father NEVER allows us to have any! Can I have some? Oh they look so good-" 

Emira proceeded to slip her brother. "Shush, Ed! CLEARLY Luz brought then for her girlfri-"

"Not. Another. Word." Amity hissed. Emira snickered and made room for Luz to sit down. 

"Hey so....King suggested I bring you some comfort food, since you are not feeling so good," the human comforted her friend. 

Amity laughed faintly. "You are so positive, oh my gods." 

Luz smiled but then frowned when looking over. "Parents put a lotta pressure on your shoulders?" 

The green-haired witch and her older twin siblings stared in the same direction where their parents were speaking with the three principals. They all seemed to be having a grand old time. Amity gulped in a breath and sunk deeper in it her sister's chest. 

"Oh, you have NO idea," she groaned. Luz did what she does best and grabbed ahold of the other's hand and stroked it. The latter smiled and a little painting of blush appeared on her cheeks. 

"I'll stay with you when the ceremony begins," Luz said softly. "Just to keep you company and add some extra support in case you're picked." 

"But!....But what about Willow or Gus??" Amity tried to argue. "You would be missing out with them! P-Plus, I don't wanna be a bother." 

"I insist," the human reassured, her tone more serious then before. Amity smiled once more and relaxed in her crush's grip. 

A larger and throaty rumbling of a horn cut through the clambering air of many talking teens. All in the area stopped their conversations and made their way to their seats and faced the Cloud of Names now accompanied by the three schools' principals. Even though she experiencing nothing like this before, Luz had a feeling of what was happening. She sat up, still close to Amity and holding her hand, the witch's siblings did the same. 

"HEY LUZ! IT'S STARTING!!" Gus called out from the other bleachers. "WILLOW AND I ARE IN THE FRONT! YOU WANNA COME JOIN US?!"

The human girl looked at Amity and knew exactly what she wanted to do. "UH, SORRY GUS! I'M GONNA HANG OUT WITH THE BLIGHT'S FOR NOW! YOU AND WILLOW ARE ALWAYS WELCOME TO COME BY THE OWL HOUSE LATER!!"

"OH! THAT'S COOL!" Gus replied loudly. "MAD RESPECT! Am....am I saying that right? 'Mad respect'?"

People were all excited and anxious as the ceremony was ready to commence. Principal Bump turned to the crowd and entered the stage alongside the foreboding presence of the Cloud of Names. He cleared his throat while the crowd still continued to converse with itself. 

"Three champions." That pair of words held enough emotion and energy in them to silence the over two hundred spectators that night. 

"Three champions shall be picked tonight," Bump continued when silence came. "Why you see before you, the mighty Cloud of Names, will be the catalyst of what will occur tonight! Yes, it will be beyond stressful and pretty scary to deal with, but if I were to speak for many of us, you SHOULD be scared. But I digress. Let us begin the Picking Ceremony." 

He whirled his finger and a thin aura formed around his free hand. After clapping and cheering subsided, he slowly stick his hand into the violent circling of the named papers. Bump winced when a few slashed at his hand while he grabbed one. But he didn't randomly pick this one. You see, the Cloud of Names was a more-or-less sentient artifact that chooses the name depending on the school and gives it to the picker. Bump swiftly grabbed the paper before the Cloud of Names could provide him more paper cuts and flicked it high into the air. He looked at the paper closely so no peak ears could see. 

"This year's champion to represent St. Epiderm High is their most athletic third year witch....LOKI MINOTONN!!" 

Very masculine cheering from the crowd of St. Epiderm students filled the tense air and brought some relief. Loki still stood stoic and unmoving but he did appear proud of his accomplishment. His principal Havenalia Dagger seemed the most proud of his accomplishment, vigorously clapping. The tall boy lumbered down from the bleachers and met Bump with a simple handshake. It was strong and firm, and more than likely left the poor older man's hand sore. 

"Oof. Heh, strong grip." Bump said while laughing nervously. "Moving on..."

Once again, he reached back onto the Cloud of Names with a reapplied aura around his hand and waited for the next student to be picked. It didn't take long for the artifact to spit out another name and Bump in addition grabbing onto it. He looked at the name and then turned to the crowd of students hailing from Glandis High. 

"I am pleased to present the champion of Glandis high, you know her singing skills, you LOVE her quips....GILDA TYRANNUS!" 

Many girls cheered wildly while their praised savior Gilda proudly laughed and flipped her hair. She leaped from atop the bleachers and went to shake Bump's hand. While doing so, the girl looked over to find Amity cowering with her siblings and hissed at the witch. Amity seemed to notice and hissed back.while that was happening, she felt a cold presence beside her. It was that Reagan guy again, eyeing her before swiftly carrying his glance back to the celebration on stage. 

"Hey, Amity..." Luz whispered to her friend. The green-haired witch perked her head up. 

"Yeah?"

"I know it's off topic but...you know that Reagan guy?" The human girl asked. 

"Yep." Amity replied faintly. "I've seen him perform spells on himself. I'm not sure why, but they definitely aren't healing spells..." 

Then came the moment of truth as Principal Bump reached his hand in it the Cloud of Names for the third and final time. Amity curled up deeper into her sister's chest and tightened her grip around the human’s hand. Bump took his time with this particular name due to it being his school. The Cloud of Names spat a new name and the old principal latched onto it. 

With a smile on his face, he read the name and turned to speak again, "And last but not least, the champion of Hexside Academy, our most popular and handsome boy of illusions...VALENTINE STARS!" 

The loudest cheering in the history of cheering came pouring out of nearly everyone's mouths when the handsome bat boy Valentine rose from his seat and gestured for more cheering. Amity felt a big weight fly off her shoulders and she loosened the grip around Luz's arm. Though she hoped Valentine would be spared from the hell that was to one with participating in the games, she couldn't help but feel proud for him. They were friends after all, and even more importantly, they were healing their wounds. Valentine swooped from the bleachers, wearing his signature smile, and landed to shake the hand of his principal. Julius was in the back, clasping his hands together and laughing; he didn't hesitate to rush over and give his only child a massive hug. 

At the end of the little cute moment between father and son, all three champions stood side-by-side in front of their adoring crowd. 

"Eternal glory will meet whoever wins the games," Bump lectured. "These three will compete head-to-head in three challenges that will test their strength, courage, and cunning in order to face success. However, we must wait a week before determining what challenges lay ahead for these young but amazingly talented students! Give them a warm round of applause-"

Suddenly, the Cloud of Names writhed around and grew restless, the levitating mass of papers swirling around in circles faster and faster. People were gasping and flinching back in the event of a disaster. 

"Hold on." Willow adjusted her glasses. "What's happening?" 

"Umm...Amity..?" Luz said nervously. "Is...is that suppose to happen, like some extra event or..?"

"No, that isn't right," Amity answered, rising from her sister's hug. "It's only supposed to be three people..." 

And out from the active and clearly upset artifact, a small paper flew out, doing flips and turns in the air, and finally landed in Bump's hands. He was shocked to say the least, but he felt he needed to read the paper. He paused for a second but slowly opened it up, and then gasped when he read the name to himself. He gestured the other two principals over; they both confused at first but went on each side of him and read the paper, as well. They also gasped and widened their eyes. The crowd was waiting in anticipation and anxiety as to why the principals were so shocked about a silly little paper. Bump cleared his throat and approached his microphone again, sweating profusely. 

"It appears we got....a-another....a fourth champion..." He gulped. "Luz Noceda!" 

The gasps grew louder and propel began muttering to one another. Willow and Gus glared at each other and then looked over to Luz. The Blight family were equally as horrified; Edric and Emirea put aside their normally cocky and joking attitudes and stared at Luz with looks of pure shock. Their parents gasped and had faces of both horror and disgust. 

For a few moments, Luz felt exactly what emotions Amity was feeling herself regarding all of this. Her name was called loud and clear, but she refused to acknowledge that it was happening. 

"No. No no no. This isn't right," Luz shook off what's happening. "There has to be some sort of m-mistake. A-Amity! You'd agree with me, ri-" 

Luz was met with a face that she's never seen in Amity before. Not just her eyes were welling up with tears, her eyes just looked so petrified and horrified. Luz looked up from her friend for a second and saw all year eyes, these cold and judge mental eyes staring right at her. She turned back and saw Amity mouth the word 'go' which was enough to get the human to rise to her feet. 

Her legs wobbled and creaked when she rose from the leathers and made her way to a very angry looking Principal Bump. She felt the disappointed and disbelieving eyes stare at her as she slowly made her way to the stage, like walls of living flesh closing in on her. She took a few glances at people around her. The three other champions looked shocked, King was confused but also very nervous, and Gus had the biggest gaping mouth she's ever seen. Above them all, Luz's usually good-natured friend Willow had a look that conveyed all sorts of emotions, including and not limited to fear, disbelief, and anger. 

So much anger....

Luz Noceda kept her head down the rest of the journey until she saw the boots of Principal Bump. She kept her head firmly down looking at only herself even when Bump cleared his throat. 

"Luz Noceda. Put your head up this instant," Bump's voice was strained with angry persistence. 

Luz winced. The fact that Bump used her whole name forcibly made her head rise to meet his glare. After finally facing her principal, Bump smoke nothing and instead just handed her the paper with her name on it. And then he finally spoke, and his words stung even more. 

"LUZ! Did you put your name into the Cloud of Names?!" Bump said not-so calmly. He had his sharp claws digging into her shoulders and pinned her back to the Cloud of Names. 

"Wh-wha....n-no!" The poor girl sputtered. "Wh-why do you th-think that? I wouldn't-" 

Bump exhaled, releasing his claws from Luz's shoulders and huffed. 

"I am usually very calm in your mistakes, but this..." He rubbed his eyes. "I must speak with Edalyn about this later. Now go back to. Your. Seat, Miss Noceda." 

Luz hesitated and was looking at the paper that had her name smudged on it. It was burned into her skull.

"LUZ NOCEDA"

She handed the principal back her paper and quietly walked back without even bothering to stand by the other champions; she thought she didn't deserve it. Her scar began to hurt once more, but she didn't even notice its stinging sensation. The poor girl only had her thoughts on whatever just had happened. When she meant by she would gladly do this instead of Amity, she never actually meant it. And now she will soon face challenges beyond her control wi little to no help in the next few days. 

🌟🌟🌟

After the ceremony, Willow and Gus still came over to the Owl House to spend the night. However, Luz couldn't help but notice how the atmosphere was so full of tension especially after her little scene. The trio were alone at home, Eda was probably heading to Hexside at this moment and King was asleep downstairs. After popping another painkilling-pill, the human sat by herself in her sleeping bag and avoiding making eye contact with her two friends. The two did the same. Though Gus did steal a few glances and then looked over to Willow, whose legs were folded up towards her chest and had a very disgusted glare. She saw her other friend staring at her with a reassuring look and sighed before finally facing Luz after many hours. 

"Why did you do it?" Willow cut the tension. 

Luz perked her head up. "...huh? What-What are you talking about?"

"Oh you know damn well what I'm saying," Willow snarled. "Your little scene. Your name being FLUNG OUT into the open." The plant witch took off her glasses to dust them off and sighed loudly. 

"Why do you always jump into so many dangerous situations when they aren't targeted towards YOU?? Like, I get it. You are new to this realm and some sort of 'special figure' to practically everyone. And I admire I your tenacity and determination to right wrongs in our society. But you are too DENSE to realize the Championship is not just some 'Olympic games' where you play against others in mixed sports and get a prize!" 

Ouch. That...really stung. Luz winced. "Willow, I kn-" 

"BUT NOTHING!" Willow snapped, a rarity for her. "Even after the whole Grudgeby incident, you STILL think so highly of yourself and your 'uniqueness' to the point you'd rather just break the rules of an age old tradition! Like your positive attitude can just MAKE you INVINCIBLE!" 

"Oh, so I am the reason my name was chosen, despite being A FREAK COINCIDENCE??" The Latina tried to object. "And, yes I know! I AM a little enthusiastic with these kinda things. And, YES. I am fully aware that I am also very positive to the point of jumping head on into life threatening disputations. But-But WHY ME?! I NEVER WANTED THIS!" 

"Then WHY is your name in the Cloud of Names, huh??" Willow glared daggers at Luz. 

The girl was ready to speak but nothing came out. She just felt so betrayed and lost, and not to mention so ignored. Luz couldn't do anything to argue that this was not her doing. She never wanted to compete in the first place. She never really liked the rules back home because of how suffocating they were. But here, she respected the laws of the Boiling Isles Championship, and the fact she's still a young teenage girl learning magic one step at a time. 

However, backed into a verbal corner because of her past behaviors and actions, she had to say something. 

Anything.

.....Nothing. 

Luz sucked in another breath and scoffed. "Okay FINE. Maybe you are PARTIALLY right, but at the moment it's NOT. They're just....just baseless." 

"Hey um...Luz? Willow?" Gus said sheepishly. "Why don't we...go get some sleep early?" 

Willow stared at Gus but then sighed. "Yeah. That sounds good...."

"Great idea, Gus," Luz said solemnly. "That way I don't have to listen to anymore useless arguments." Oh gods, Luz. Why did you a have to say that?! The human decided she had enough of today, rolling on her side in her sleeping bag for the night. 

Willow and Gus did the same and faced away from each other. Though this as the the last thing Willow would say tonight. She took off her glasses and made a prolonged sigh. 

"....piss off." She spoke to herself extremely faintly. 

Though Luz could hear it loud and clear, and inhaled sharply. It hurt; Luz loved her friends so much, and she knows they are just a little mad at her. But how long will they be like this? The girl turned her body over and stared up at the ceiling, tears began to fill the corners of her eyes. 

"Mámi, Cometí un gran error." Luz whispered to herself before closing her eyes and succumbing to sleep. 

🌟🌟🌟

Practical Bump sat in his studies, nervously fondling the piece of paper Luz gave back to him. The only only person keeping him company in his room was the St. Epiderm headmaster Heavenalia Dagger in back on a large coach reading a book. She got out of her reading a looked up to Bump who clearly was very distressed. 

"Bump, don't you thunk this is all a little suspicious?" She spoke up. "First the attack on the festival and now THIS? There is no way in Hell both events are somehow connected!"

"I know there have been....rumors regarding the attack earlier this week," Principal Bump sighed. "But I know what had to be done right now." 

The door swung open, and two figures entered the studies. First came Julius Stars wearing a large black coat and his signature red suit. 

"Hieronymus, our guest has arrived," the old bat addressed. 

From behind the towering monster, a shorter but still lanky old woman stepped in: Edalyn Clawthorne. She was decked out in her regular red dress but also sported a long dark Crimson cape with matching hood. She looked awfully tired, conserving the added weight in elixirs she had strapped around her belt. 

"Alright, Bumpsey," the old witch yawned. "You dragged me from the night market for a reason, right? Got something to say, speak now." 

She flipped right onto the nearest couch and sprawled her legs over the side while Bump rose to his seat. 

"Edalyn, as much as I love your pupil," he began slowly. 

"Lemme guess, some the happened to Luz at school, huh?" Eda interrupted. "What was it? Smoke bomb accident? Releasing some abominations into the cafeteria? If it's the latter, she'll be earning a cake in the morning!" 

The witch snorted to herself before Bump lashed back at her. "Eda you HAVE to take this seriously. Just listen to what I have to say."

"Alright alright, I'm all ears, Bumps," Eda wiped a tear from her eye and paid more close attention. 

"Now-I um...." The principal cleared his throat harshly. "Tonight was the Picking Ceremony for...the Boiling Isles Championship. And-...umm. Your human-"

"What about her?" The witch cocked an eyebrow. 

"Well, at the ceremony, three names were already chosen, but the Cloud of Names...reacted badly...and....Luz's name...was chosen..." 

Eda was silent at first and stared at Bump before snorting again. 

"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on a second," she said between laughs. "That's...that's gotta be a joke. Because I if it is, that is a REALLY good one, Bumps. You always were a card, even back in the day!" 

Her lights became more nervous while the other principals looked at her and to each other with very serious yet sad expressions. Eventually the laughing did stop when Eda realized the weight of the situation. The witch stair ghee herself up from the couch to appear more intense with the conversation. 

"Oh gods, you-you're being serious..." Eda realized. "Oh. Okay. So. So Luz is going to die and she's gonna do something over the top and brainless during the games and I'm gonna be held responsible for a the body of a child and the-"

"Oh Edalyn, enough of those horrible words!" Julius barked. "She will not die because we will not allow her to compete in the first place!"

"Yeah! Don't let her compete! Let her forfeit all the events!" Heavenalia added. 

"As much as I want to spare the poor girl's life-" Bump started. 

"-It is unfortunately nearly impossible go do..." Eda interrupted in a saddened voice. "I love the kid, and I would without hesitation destroy the entire Boilng Isles if she-...but, it pains me to say this. Let her compete, Bump." 

"Edalyn-" Bump tried to protect but the old witch sat up and paused him with a swift hand in front of his face. 

"I'm scared. I'm sure she'll be too," Eda spoke softly. "But I think she...should stay in. Beside, Luz would NEVER forfeit or quit anything thrown at her. That isn't her. That's not my girl." 

Bump wanted to argue, he really wanted to. But his former student did make a very valid point. He sighed and made his way back to his seat. 

"...very well." He said defeated. "But Eda...make sure she survives."

"I think my girl will take care of that." Eda smiled lightly. "But I'm gonna still have to talk to her." 

"And how are you to do that, Edalyn?" Julius asked. 

"Eh. I'll think of something." Eda was ready to call it a night but before leaving the studies, she turned to the three principals one last time. 

"Bump. Heavenalia. Jules-er, Julius. Please make sure Luz is safe during the duration of the games." The Owl lady's voice was genuinely pained. 

The three principal nodded. "You have our word." Bump answered. 

Eda nodded back and smiled, whipping out her staff again and got one 

"Clawthorne, where are you going??" Heavenalia gasped. "W-We still got some stuff to talk about you-"

"Sorry, teach," Eda waved. "I gotta do some investigating. There's no way this is just a huge, sick coincidence! Good night!" 

And off she went into the night sky, leaving behind three very tired and very confused headmasters. The Owl lady soared high above the school and over Bonesborough, admiring the scenery of the activity below. The Night Market was bustling with all sorts of shady folk and nasty swindlers. She wasn't there too long ago before being summoned. However, as soon as she saw the Owl House over the hills, some clamor into in a thick patch of forest gained her attention more. She decided the kids could wait and flew down into the wooded grounds. 

She landed softly in the tall grass, leaned her staff on a nearby tree and slowly crept her way to some bushes where the sounds came from. What she saw on the other side was something that made her gasp quite loudly. She had to hide behind her shrubby barrier since the figures that were over there looked up. 

"Luz is gonna want to see this...." Eda said quietly to herself. 

Suddenly she felt a twinge of pain in her gem and caused her to cough. She rose to her feet once far away enough and realized feathers were coming back. 

"But how am I gonna do that looking like this...?" The Owl Lady coughed again. More feathers formed on her arms. She hastily looked from branch her cloak and found only two elixirs attached to her belt. 

"Ah gee. This isn't gonna be enough to make it to the house." Eda looked over at her staff and knew what she had to do. She whistled over, Owlbert cooed and removed himself from his perch. Eda had some spare paper inside her massive hair and wrote a quick note. 

"Send this to Hooty," Eda commanded. "Tell him to NOT give it to Luz until school." 

The owl took the note in his beak and flew off and left Eda behind to her problems. She decided to lay down for a bit in the grass, just letting the curse take her this time. It really hurt and the fact Luz is gonna be in major danger this time and she couldn't help her....it was like the curse fed on those worries. She could see them now, but soon. Very soon. 

She HAD to show her little human student this. This alone could prove to save her and reveal more what has been going on with the Emperor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY WOW!! Over 800 people like my story?! Thank you so much! You all are so kind to me!! I am so glad you all have been enjoying this silly little tale I've been writing! 
> 
> Also, to anyone who tunes in for my Spinel story suggestion project and Sonic Seas, please be patient. I'm so sorry I have neglected those stories; I just haven't had to inspiration to continue them. But I solo not abound in them! Not ever! But still. I'm sorry...


	6. Propoganda

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: LOTS of swearing, violence and death threats, harm towards animals, maybe racism???? Idk

Unfortunately for Eda, luck was not in her side this time. Though the letter she made and sent to Hooty through Owlbert did successfully arrive, the large bird tube slept in and therefore wasn't able to give it to Luz. Good thing Hooty knew a witch that could probably give it go her. As for Luz....

For the first time she has been in this wonderfully scary world, today was probably the worst one the human has experienced. At school, many students and even teachers would not dare to talk to her and instead gave her deathly glares and some even growled. Those who did not do those things mocked her and scolded at her for doing something illegal. Something she did NOT do at all. Luz normally wouldn't mind all this bullying due to constantly being subjected to it back home. However, due to the fact she always felt she belonged here like on Earth, it made Luz feel...empty. 

Well, at least she had two friends that-...oh. Wait. 

Gus and Willow were just as miffed towards her as everyone else in Hexside. Amity was also nowhere to be found during the school day. Either Luz was just too busy being sad and avoiding everyone so she could not see Amity, OR Amity was hiding from her. She must hate her, just like Gus and Willow but more so Willow. Well, she still had the Delinquent kids to keep her company. 

At the end of this pretty rotten day at school, Luz found herself being called out of class as well as the three other champions to meet someone special in Principal Bump's studies. Valentine noticed the sad look on the human's face and decided to intervene. 

"Hey um, Luz? Why are you staring down at the ground like that?" The bat asked quizzically. 

"Oh! Valentine!!" the human yelped, swiftly whipping her head back to face the bat. "Good....question. I, um...I like to stare at...my feet. Yeah! My feet! They are nice feet." 

"Uh-huh." Valentine gave the girl a 'you're not fooling anyone' look. "Is this about friends? The...uh, incident from last night?" 

"K-Kinda...? I mean...." Luz sighed. "Well, my friends Gus and Willow are...kinda mad at me. They think I put my name into the Cloud of Names. I haven't seen Amity since yesterday, and everyone els just stares and me like I committed a crime in PUBLIC! But I didn't do it!"

"Oh don't be so dramatic about their behavior, 'Luz'er," Gilda mocked. "You're not some special case. ALL champions picked in the game are destined to be left to their devises alone. Old tradition." 

"That is only UNTIL the day of the first challenge,' Valentine rolled his eyes. "That will be tomorrow, which will be the day of betting and predictions of winners. You'll bound to have at least a small following."

"Doubt it," Gilda said before Luz could. "You may have skills performing a unique form of magic, but if Amity Calamity isn't gonna vote for you then, heh. You're beat, little girl." 

"Shut your jaws, tiny lizard," Loki chimed in annoyingly; his voice was deep and gruff, a thick accent was also present. "There is no need to speak harshly of the human girl. It is tedious. It is already clear who will come out on top in the games." The witch huffed in amusement. 

Valentine glared at both champions before turning to Luz once again, sighing. "As much as I want to defend you against these...uh, frankly creepy folk, I unfortunately cannot. I like you Luz. I REALLY want to see you prevail. Just...don't get your hopes up about my kindness towards you. Loki is partially right; you probably already know who will be on top at the end of all of this. Though I'm not saying it'll be you or I, but who knows?" 

The bat patted the human girl on the back firmly and flashed he a smirk before leading the group of four down the hall. Of course he would...

Valentine was a fascinating individual. On one hand, he was a rich and popular boy with all the good looks and charm the Boiling Isles could cluster together in one body. But in the other hand, he may be kind and caring and also willing to stand up for others, he's ALSO the king of Bystanders. The bystander to end all bystander. He tended to side or even just be near the wrong people It was evident because of Val's chosen group of friends, and the moment just now. But Luz didn't jump to conclusions on this. Her mind was busy with thoughts of why these four were called in the first place. That...and the friends she missed dearly. 

The four champions ended up at the door leading to Principal Bump's private study which opened up to reveal a dark-skinned, curly haired male witch adorning a fancy medieval jacket standing straight in the doorframe. Holding a notepad in one hand, he was smiling eagerly at the young souls. 

"Ah yes! Just the children I've been looking for! Come in come in!" The man gingerly invited the four into the private study. 

The witch guided the champions over to a chair placed in the center of the room, and a turtle-like woman with crazy mangled hair and pointed, kooky glasses stood by a large old-fashioned camera. She snapped a few pictures, causing Luz to blink often. 

"Bump wasn't kidding," the kappa lady acknowledged. "You truly are a colorful selection. Dragon girl, sit! Sit!" 

Gilda shrugged and sit down slowly into the chair. Valentine, Loki and Luz stood around her in that exact order, awaiting to get more pictures taken. The dark-skinned witch from earlier approached them with hands clasped together once the photographer captured the last photo. 

"What a wonderful group of good-looking champions!" The man chirped; he offered his hand to each student. 

"Hello hello hello! I am Perry Porter. I am the main reporter for the Bonesborough News Network, as well as part-time author. The Emperor's Coven requested me and my photographer--by the way that's her behind me, Miss Rhea Jewelback--to come and get to know you all as people!"

"Reporter, eh?" Gilda flashed a smile. 

"Now, let me take a closer look at each of your, a'ight?" He took turns looking at each but especially took his time when examining their facial features and even listened to their voices. 

"Ah I see Mr. Valentine Stars is part of our roster." Mr. Porter shook Valentine's hand enthusiastically, Val shook back. 

"A pleasure to see a fellow Stars fan." The bat said with a hint of pride and a smile to compliment it. 

"And here we have Loki Minotonn, the jock, the captain. The STAR of the St. Epiderm High Grudegby team! No offense to you, Stars." 

The reporter shook the tall man's hands and was pleasantly surprised by the student's tough grip. Loki snorted. Perry then glided over to Gilda who sat straight in her chair and wearing a confident but feminine look. 

"Gilda Tyrannus. You are very confident swimmer as I've heard from home."

"Naturally, water-based sports are in our blood, sir," the water dragon boasted. 

And last but not least, Perry made his way to Luz and immodestly he gasped and examined her. 

"And YOU must be Miss Luz Noceda," the reporter blinked hard, baffled by a FOURTH competitor. "My boy Augustus has told me many stories about you and your misadventures on the Isles!"

Luz's eyes widened. "And YOU must be Gus' dad! He's...never told me anything about you but you seem cool!"

"Yes yes! Now if you don't mind I would LOVE if you'd let me ask you a few questions. You know, regarding the Championship Games and all that." 

"Oh! S-sure!" With a confirmation from Luz, Perry Porter took the girl by the hand and dragged her into a much smaller side room. Luz was very confused at first but kinda just went along with it. 

"I-I thought you were gonna interview the others??" The human wondered. 

"Oh, Rhea will take care of it while you are with me," Perry dismissed. "Now where did I put my dang notepad and quill?" 

The room was very small, practically a tiny closet where the two witches were stuck inside. This lack of space proved to be difficult for both as Perry struggled over his own body to try to uncover his notepad while Luz had to dodge the man's flailing arms that wrapped around all over. Finally did he find his notepad sticking out in the farthest pocket of his dusty brown pants. 

"Aha! There you are, you troublesome pack of paper," he exclaimed happily, taking quill in hand. "Now now now. Let us begin!" He cleared his throat. 

"Ummmm. I have a question of my own...why are we in a closet?" Luz asked, her body pushed against a wall. "Doesn't seem so...space-ish for an interview." 

"It's best to find a secluded space to ask more sensitive topics." Percy said while scribbling in his notepad. 

"Well. I guess I can't argue with that."

"Good to hear, dear! Now, first question. The principal said your name was chosen in the Cloud of Names last night. And that YOU put it in a couple nights before, yes or no?"

Luz's smile faltered, and she scowled. "No. No, I did NOT. Why does EVERYONE think that?? I keep trying to tell them I had little to NO involvement in that FREAK incident!"

"I see," Perry mused. "So you DIDN'T put your name into the Cloud of Names? Okay okay. Got it." 

"YES THANK YOU!" The girl groaned exasperatedly. Perry contemplated over his written notes with a quizzed look on his face. 

"Well uh, I don't mean to be a downer or a bubble popper...I think that's what it's called...but you should feel excited for being picked!"

Luz stopped mid-relieved sigh and glanced at the reporter. "Wait I'm sorry. Did you say I should be 'EXCITED for being picked?'"

"Why sure!" The reporter answered enthusiastically. "You've broken all sorts of rules, child, sure. Dismissing the rules of magical ability limit, going on grounds at night, limit of champions in the games, not being of witch descent, to name a few. But hey! That just adds to the EXCITEMENT of it all! Why, the Boiling Isles Championship hasn't seen anyone this young be picked since....gee, I don't even know when." 

"So. Even though it sounds ILLEGAL, I should still participate." Luz could not believe what Perry was emphasizing. 

"Of course, Luz," Perry added. "I know it seems scary to you, and hell, I am sure everyone you know is also scared or angry or sad, or a combination of those three. But before you know it, people will learn to cheer you on and wish for the best from you!"

Luz slumped down on the floor, or at least go down low as far as the closet can hold the two. 

"Well, isn't this just GREAT?? You are my friend's dad, a man I assumed would have my back in all this chaos, wants to do nothing but bend my story in the worst ways. Just like news reports at home..."

"Hey hey hey, that is NOT what I am doing myself," Perry fretted, waving his hands around. "The Emperor's Coven was originally the culprit behind bending news reports. I merely am the pawn in their 'game of chess'. Besides--"

The older man bent down on his knees and lent a hand to the poor girl curled up on the floor. She got up and immediately the man spoke a sentence so simple but impactful it would stick with her for the rest of the games. 

"Everyone loves a rebel, Miss Luz." 

But was that really true? Because judging how Willow and Gus had been treating her, those words were as hallow as the closet the witches were crammed in. 

"Unbelievable...." Luz sighed forlornly. 

"Did I say something wrong?" Perry asked worryingly.

"YES." The girl blatantly said. "I don't want this! I don't want to compete in the games! I don't want my friends to be mad with me! And I ESPECIALLY don't want my story to be full of some made up, over exaggerated nonsense that would look more like a fanfiction rather than a real report about a real person!!" 

Luz saw her chance to escape, pushing Perry lightly to the side and dashed out the door. Loki interrupted his own interview when he saw the human girl with a big drown across her face storm out from a closet while the other reporter was chasing after her frantically. 

"Luz! Y-young one! Come back!" Perry called desperately. "I-I didn't mean to upset you! You haven't even answered more than one question yet!" 

"Sorry sir. I just....need to get away from school..." Luz couldn't even believe herself for saying such blasphemous words. 

But nevertheless, she fled the private study with a very upset and disgusted look on her face and continued rushing down the hall. On the other side of the hallway, Reagan was watching from afar. He contemplated on what to do next but decided he would not intervene this time and went his own way, casting another spell on him to ease a pain. 

Luz found herself perched atop of a small tree overlooking a large pond next to Hexside's immensely wide property. However she was thankfully not alone. Jerbo came out from the Hall of Shortcuts...somehow...and sat at the edge of the pond wading his toes in the water. Good thing this pond didn't hold the boiling water the Boiling Sea held. Though he stopped wading for a second to bend down into the water and picked some beautiful plants growing plentifully below the water. 

"Well hello.." He muttered to himself. "What are you crazy specimens??" 

He took bundles in hand and examined each thread of this strange looking plants. He oohed and ahhed at their wonderful green hues and complex veins. He decided he'd study them later and see if they react to abomination recipes or not. A minute passed, and Jerbo set his bundle aside only to get sucked in into another bundle of plants under the water. 

Except they happened to be the exact same plant. 

"Well hello..." He muttered again. "What are you crazy specimen-"

"Jerbo." Luz called. 

"Wha-huh? Luz?"

"You're saying it again." 

Jerbo blinked and noticed he did say the same words from before. "Huh. Good ears. Sorry..." 

"You still hanging in there?" Luz asked still concerned regarding yesterday. 

Jerbo shrugged. "I've been better but I have noticed I've been...losing my train of thought lately. The Healer said it'll subside in a couple days." 

"Oh. Neat," Luz said, but she didn't seem so enthused. 

The words from Perry earlier were swirling around in her head like a bunch of smoke clogging every other thought. 

'...you should feel excited for being picked!'

'You've broken all sorts of rules, child, sure....But hey! That just adds to the EXCITEMENT of it all!'

'Everyone loves a rebel, Miss Luz.'

The girl didn't believe any of those thoughtless words even with them keeping her mind set on said words. Yet at the same time, she knew Perry's angle of what he said. Luz always was the "rebel" or the "black sheep" of both worlds, on Earth being the less prominent example than here. Maybe Perry was right. Maybe she should put on a brave face and embrace what dangers and consequences that were bound to her path. 

No, she couldn't! Not with everyone ostracizing her and thinking her as a law breaker! Not with the human wanting nothing to do with all this.

Though she COULD. 

She is capable. She's been through loads of life-or-death situations. Fighting Warden Wrath. Going up against Grom with her best friend by her side. Challenged the Bat Queen. Hiding from a fully cursed Eda--wait, where IS Eda? 

Then came a voice from behind. 

"LUZ! LUZ!" The voice was from Gus who was jogging towards her. He had something in his hand. 

"G-Gus!" Luz stuttered and struggled to stay perched in the branch. Then she noticed Willow was following behind, the plant witch not looking happy in the slightest. 

"And...Willow too." The girl was still a little mad at Willow on her end but she couldn't help but crack a very sad, forced smile. 

"L-Luz! Got...something! To tell you!" Gus panted between breaths. 

"Uh, yeah?" Luz said and then leaped out of the tree. "What's...going on?" 

Gus turned to face Willow, the witch rolled her eyes and gestured to her friend to keep talking. 

"Well....it's a long story," the illusionist began. "Okay hear me out! Willow told me to tell you that Amity told HER that HOOTY gave her--Amity by the way--a note given by OWLBERT saying that Eda-...Eda is looking for you!" 

Luz had to process all of this rambling. She blinked several times before cocking an eyebrow and tilting her head. 

"Wait. So, you came her to tell me that Willow told YOU that Amity told HER that this note given to HOOTY was saying that-" 

"That Eda is looking for you." Gus finished the sentence more quickly. "Oh! Here's the note by the way! Willow told me not to read it so...I'm just a blind messenger." 

Luz quickly took the note in hand, rubbing it with each digit of her pointer fingers and noticed how the note was written in a hurry. All she could make out from the smudged words and crossed out ones as well was: 

"Kid.............

Need help..................potions at home?

Forest in the front.............Owl House......

Something I need to show you....................................very suspicious. 

just hurry up and don't ask questions!

\- Eda"

Too bad for Eda. Luz DID have one question to ask her friends about the letter. 

"Hey uh, awkward question, Gus," Luz said while nervously laughing. "Could you tell Willow that I can't read the note very well. And could you ALSO tell her to say want was in the note as well. Considering other than Amity, SHE had it first..." 

Gus thought about it for a second, looking back and forth between both girls before making up his mind and speed walking over to Willow. He whispered some things into Willow's ear, in which the plant witch scowled and then whispered something indistinctly back into Gus'. The young boy rushed back over to a very patient Luz and began talking again. 

"Willow DID actually read the note, and she says it's just about Eda wanting you to come by some woods and...bringing elixirs? I'm not sure what that means but, hey, that was in the note." 

"The curse." Luz realized. But when she saw Gus leaving with Willow, Lux decided to speak out again. 

"Well then. Can YOU tell WILLOW that I don't have a lot of information why Eda's in the wo-"

The younger boy swiftly turned around and roared, "I'M NOT A PALISMAN, LUZ!"

The human girl was taken aback by her normally chipper friend's sudden angry outburst, causing her to wince but go wide eyed as well. Gus realized what he had done and rushed back over to apologize. He was cautious to tough her arms in he fear that she would lash out like he did, but this time it would be physical. However, much to his sadness, the girl closed her eyes and steered his hands away very softly. 

"Luz....I'm so so sorry. I-I don't know what that wa-"

"You don't have to apologize to me, Gus," Luz spoke quietly, looking at her friend with tired, depressed eyes and an added heart-crushing smile. 

"You and Willow both have all the right to be mad at me." 

Gus was silent, but even Luz could tell the young witch did no agree with her. Though their time was cut short when Willow signaled Gus from afar that it was their time to leave. Gus gave his human friend a pat on both shoulders and ran back over to Willow's side. For a split second the plant witch looked into Luz's eyes with a spark of regret but quickly shook it off and walked alongside Augustus back to the campus. 

Jerbo was still there, unfortunately, and heard all of that salty drama being stirred up. He went beside Luz as she watched the two friends she loved depart on a sour note, a numb stare on her face. 

"Yeesh..." The boy said under his breath. 

Luz snapped out of her forlorn trance and felt the time to go had come. She said a quick goodbye to her good friend and rushed off back to the Owl House. Though she had to be as quick as possible. Anything could be going on in those woods. 

🌟🌟🌟

The girl didn't waste a moment getting back to the Owl House, rummaging around for some more elixirs and dashed unit the woods next door. The tall trees stared down at Luz with their thorny, dangerous lay sharp branches and looming pitch black shadow shadow. There was a thick sense of dread in the air the farther into the crowded wood she went. Luz donned Eda's crimson red cape to cover herself and it dragged behind her as she went through the tall grass. The elixirs jingled like haunting bells in her pockets. 

"Eeeedaaaaaa???" The girl loudly called. 

Something nearby made the tall grass rustle. Luz sped up her walking as she closed in on some large and vast area of bushes. She approached them and suddenly she heard a loud crash of a tree from behind her. The Latina swirled around to see if she was being followed, but nothing was there. She continued. 

Luz used her stronger nerd arms to cut her any through the thick shrubbery, revealing on the other side to be a large clearing carpeted with long flowing grass and bioluminescent purple fungi. It was gorgeous, but Luz didn't have time to look in awe. 

"EDA! IT'S LUZ!!" The girl called out again. 

This time, the trees rustled violently and another loud but closer thud was heard. Luz didn't have the chance to turn around yet for a massive feathered figure landed right behind her. The flap of its wings generating a big enough draft that it caused the greases around her to sway quickly and Luz's cloak shake as well. A small but thirsty growl escaped the beast's mouth, the human now had fully turned around and stared deep into the beast's dark black eyes. Luz let out a scream and began to run away right after the beast let out a shrill, demonic screech and ran after her. 

"AGH! OWL BEAST EDA! OWL BEAST EDA!!!!" The girl shrieked while continent to run back into the thicket of the woods. The owl beast ran awkwardly through the thick woods, occasionally smacking into the trunks of trees and tripping over large stones fused in the plains before eventually getting back up each time. Luz needed to slow Eda down enough to provide her the elixir. She found this the perfect time to use some of her glyphs. 

When she stumbled upon a smaller and covered up clearing of trees to the south, Luz whipped out a plant glyph and smacked it on the ground. However she did not activate it yet, for that would be where Owl Beast Eda comes in. Luz climbed a tree nearby in order to tempt the beast, and she did a pretty damn good job. Owl beast Eda appeared in the same area not long after, sniffing the ground and scanning the area for her prey. Eda looked up and saw the girl trembling in the tree, and she let out another animalistic scream. Unfortunately on the beast's part, she stepped right into her apprentice's trap. 

The glyph activated when Eda's feathered leg landed onto it mid lunge and thick thrones vines wildly generated and grew around all the beast's limbs. Luz leaped down from the tree to get a better look. Even in beast form, Eda was a fighter...and a thrasher. She screeched many times while attempting to wriggle out of the trap. She swung her arms and nipped at Luz and howled more times, but the vines still held her down like chains. Luz approached the agitated owl beast with elixirs in hand. Due to the irritated nature of Eda, the girl saw no other choice but to force feed her mentor the elixir by hand. 

"Eda...you're probably gonna hate me after this but-" Luz muttered to herself. 

With extreme caution, she casted another plant glyph to form around and grab ahold of Eda's fluffy neck to hold her down. This gave the human the opportunity to open each elixir one at a time, and now prying open the beast's jaws, Luz poured each one down Eda's esophagus and watched it be forcibly downed. Eda let out some growls and squawks of retaliation before they fully subsided and collapsed back into the vines. Luz waited patiently for Eda to return to normal but was startled to see the owl beast rise back on her four legs. However, rather than immodestly going back to attacking the poor girl, the beast gasped loudly and revealed her golden eyes clear of any black splotches. 

"Oh gods!" Eda gasped. She looked around until locking eyes with Luz. "Phew! Oh thank the Titan you found me in time-...hey hold on. What's with the look, kid?"

Luz--trembling for all that happened--got her phone out and showed a tiny but clear enough reflection of the old witch still in her full owl beast form minus the dark eyes. 

"AH!" Eda exclaimed and stumbled backwards. She got up quickly, however and sat down. She looked thoughtfully at her arms. 

"Well. Ain't this uncanny?" Eda snorted. 

"How could you be so careless about your curse, Eda?!" Luz snapped. 

"Hey! Now's not the time to berating ME of all people!" Eda interjected angrily. "IN FACT! I have some things to berate YOU about, young lady." 

"Oh great! You too?!" The angered girl shouted. "Great. Just what I needed. ANOTHER person in the Boiling Isles pointing fingers." 

"Oh, now you listen here, squirt," Eda gasped. "I'm not really appreciatin' your attitude. So zip the lip and get to explaining, buddy. You are in serious trouble with tinkerin' around with ancient Boiling Isles tradition." 

"Ugh! YOU PEOPLE ARE ALL THE SAME!" Luz screamed and collapsed to the floor. 

The owl beast lowered her once flared up wings and her expression softened. Luz was beginning to cry, new tears were being shed rapidly and streaming down her cheeks even faster. Eda sat down in a dog-like fashion in front of the poor girl and listened to her sniffles and sobs. 

"E-Everyone th-thinks...I did it," she hiccuped. "Th-That...I-I put my name in-into the-the C-Cloud-" she didn't even have the mental energy to speak anymore; her words dissolved back into crying. 

Eda knew she couldn't just sit there like some concerned, confused pet. She stood up, stepped a little closer and then sat back down again but reached her large hands out to touch Luz's cheeks. 

"Okay, kiddo. Listen to me and be honest when I ask this," she spoke softly yet with a hint of sternness. "Did or did you NOT put your name into the Cloud of Names?" 

Luz sucked in a shaky breath and shook her head. "No." 

"Pardon?" 

"No." The girl answered again but louder. 

Eda had a blank look in her face. And then after a few small moments, she responded with, "Okay. I believe you."

Luz jolted her head up. "Wait. That's all? You ACTUALLY believe me? But you-...you were-" 

"Luz, you are the most rebellious and out-of-the box thinker human girl I've ever met in my entire life," the old witch said genuinely. "But even I know when if was you who did something wrong or someone completely different. When I overheard the principals talking about you, did I believe them? FUCK no, kid!" 

The with offered a wing to Luz who happily obliged and leaned her body against it. "This is...one helluva scary thing, am I right? But I am confident that you will do GREAT in these games! Not just because your being taught by one of the most powerful witches in this whole damn demon world--ahem! That is, ah moi--but also you are a tough as nails, ready-for-anything badass heroine! I know my girl well, and you giving up is NOT it. It's okay to be scared, buddy, but don't let these people at school and the most recent....er, 'events' threaten your feelings." 

Luz was amazed. Never in so long had this old witch given her such genuinely fantastic advice. It felt too much like what her mother would say to her before a new year of school. Eda did have a few gems of advice here and there, but this particular moment overshadowed the others. This gave the girl enough courage to rise back to her feet and wiped away her tears. 

"Thank you...thank you so much for that wake up call," Luz quietly said, cracking a tiny smile. "Wow. That was probably the best advice you've given me in months!"

"Good," Eda smirked. "I gave a lot of energy to make that nugget of advice, so don't expect another one just as good. I'm a one-hit wonder when it comes to heart-to-hearts." 

The Latina laughed. She then looked up at the owl beast with a sad grin. Eda cocked an eyebrow.

"You itching for one of those parallel arm things?"

"Yes, please." Luz tearfully replied. 

Eda sighed again and straightened her bulky, feathered body to look imposing while the young human girl wrapped her arms around the owl beast's chest. Eda didn't dare to hug back, but she did pat the Luz's head instead. Then a tremble wracked her body. Eda felt the gem implanted in her chest tingle and black magic swirled against the gold. 

"Okay okay, you had your comfort time, Luz," the witch pulled back. "But this isn't why I sent that letter. There is something I have to show you, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that it's VERY VERY important."

Luz pulled back from the hug and began to rummage in her cloak. "Wait! I got another bottle of your elixir!" 

She rummaged again to look for another while Eda waited in desperate anticipation. However, judging by Luz's deflated look returning afterwards the elixir she had in her hand was the last one. 

"Last one, eh?" Eda took the elixir into her claws. "Well, I suppose this bottle will last me another uh,....twenty minutes, probably. So we're gonna have to be quick." 

The witch quickly chugged down the last elixir and shook her feathers. She then began to walk while Luz followed behind. Eda noticed that the little squirt was wearing her cloak which made her crack a smile. 

"Man kid, I should REALLY knit you a cloak of your own," she snickered. "You may look fierce in red, but it's a little too big for ya." 

Luz looked down at the cloak and agreed. "So, what's going on? You...wanted to show me something, right?" 

Eda looked back for a second. "You...got the letter right? This morning?" 

"Actually, Willow gave me the note," Luz answered; her voice hitched on Willow's name. 

"Ugh, that damn bird tube sleepin' in...." Eda muttered angrily to herself. "Well, did she READ it to you at all?"

Luz shook her head. "Nope. She just...passed it off to Gus and he gave it to me. All he said was you were in the forest and needed your elixirs."

Eda hummed in annoyance. "Okay, well. I'm sure as long as we keep speed-walking QUICKLY and QUIETLY, then I won't gain back the instinct to maim you. Now let's get going! There is something I found that is really important!!" 

The owl beast paused for a second. "You're totally rocking that new scar, by the way." 

The human apprentice blushed and flashed a happy smile. 

Luz and Eda once again began to walk down deeper into the woods, trailing through deep patches of tall grass and brightly colored fungi. Suddenly, out in the open, both witches hear the faint murmurs of people up ahead. There laid a long straight line of puffy bushes covered in small thorns and dotted with poisonous berries. Luz instinctively ducked down behind them while her mentor bent on all fours to get a better look over the bushes. Luz did the same by creating a small clearing in the thick shrubbery to act as a looking hole. 

On the other side was a scene no witch or even human could ever possibly fathom. 

Emperor's guards were found all over this new clearing beyond the shrubs. They were guarding the area that was populated by massive, rusty cages. These cages were not empty and barren, however, due to the various sounds of monstrous creatures filling the air. A couple monsters were forced to move around the land by some accompanied guards with grand-new attire: dark bronze chest plates and gloves, as well as torn orange capes and holding the beast at arm's length by tattered chains. A couple others wielded whips in one hand in order to back off more rebellious monsters. 

Luz and Eda were both equally disgusted. But the girl had this swirling expression of terror, confusion and a stunned realization all wrapped up on some messed up pie of emotions. 

"You could...probably know what this is for...." Eda broke the silence quietly.

"Monsters???" Luz whisper-yelled in response. "The first task...is to fight MONSTERS???" 

"Called it," the owl beast squinted her eyes. "Sweet Mother Catalyst's robes. There's gotta be, like, over seven dozen different monsters out there. Hell, this is bad..."

Both spies flopped on their backsides in pure surprise and uncomfortable shock. 

"How am I suppose to fight literal MONSTERS??" Luz exclaimed. 

"May I remind you that you've defeated a basilisk disused as an inspector that could SUCK THE VERY LIFE out of witches," Eda pointed out. "This is awfully suspicious, though. Hand-selected monsters trapped in suffocating cages. Emperor's guards lining every inch of land like some damn sentient statues. This is just too...wrong."

"I'm calling it now," Luz said confidently. "This is just some huge coincidence, a misunderstanding!" Suddenly, the poor girl connected the dots. 

"Unless...."

"Emperor Belos saw all of this coming." Both witches said in accidental unison. 

"Uh-uh! No way! That clinically insane cult leader better NOT be doing what I think he's doing," Eda hissed. 

"I can't believe it...The Cloud of Names wants me dead," Luz spoke in a deathly cold voice. "Everyone wants me dead."

Eda sighed. "I shoulda know it would come to this. My kid, my wonderfully talented human kid, getting into trouble she didn't cause and then getting close to death because of it. Well ain't that swell??"

The two sat in silence for what seemed like hours, when really it was only merely a few measly minutes. But then Eda decided to speak up once again. 

"Luz, I need you to be yourself and compete." 

Luz darted her eyes upwards towards the owl beast. "I'm sorry, what?!" 

"What I'm saying is that there is, unfortunately, nothing I can do for you," the old witch confessed. "I know this is wrong and scary and you will probably get extremely hurt for competing, but at the same time...I guess I am...confident in your ability. Whether it be fighting monsters, taming wild plants or swimming in boiling water, I'm sure you'll make it on top."

"I appreciate your confidence in me, Eda," Luz tried to wear a tiny smile. "But how am I gonna go against one of THOSE in front of THOUSANDS of people!?" 

"I...Don't know...." Eda said with painful honesty. "But listen to me when I say you WILL win and you WILL survive. Besides, no one said anything about using glyphs. As far as I'm concerned, to HELL with what the Emperor says about magic. Use it all and be confident!! Be YOU." 

Luz gained some newfound confidence from her mentor's words. But it faltered however, when she realized she wasn't the only one in danger. 

"So the Emperor is messing with the games....like some....crazy dungeon master," the girl spoke. "I need to tell someone about this."

Eda tilted her head. "I mean, you don't really HAVE to. I know about all of this-"

"No, I mean the other champions," Luz stressed. "Because I'm the 'rare fourth', and if our suspicions are correct, Valentine, Gilda and Loki all will ALSO be in trouble. I have to warn them. Or at least one of them."

Just as the younger girl swiftly rose off the ground, Eda yelped very quietly and hastily took Luz by the arm and forced her back down. The Owl Lady whispered a stern "keep down!" when she noticed a guard look up and around. The guard shrugged and went off to help his guard mates wangle a very aggressive griffin into its cage.

"EDA." Luz gasped. 

"As much as I approve of your concern for those complete strangers, they...well, not really Valentine in this case, but those other two rub me the wrong way. One's some all-mighty jock with a warrior's complex, and the other one is a LITERAL SIREN. You really expect either one to listen to you? The only decent one is Valentine, but because of his status you'll just be washed aside like some lost soul." 

"That is not true, Eda, and you know it," Luz scowled. 

"Okay okay. Maybe telling them won't be as big of a mess than I make it out t' be. But besides, do you really need to spill the beans to those jokers tomorrow of all times??" 

Luz paused. "Wait a second. What's wrong with tomorrow??"

Eda sighed and scratched her head with one of her back legs. "Y'see, kiddo. You think today was bad, oh you have NO IDEA what's gonna happen tomorrow. People usually begin to place bets when the day of Task One rolls around. And trust me. You feeling alone today will feel rather comforting than tomorrow. I've been in Hexside AND lived through one of these Boiling Isles Championship Games, and boy, are teenagers scary." 

That did not help Luz's case much, but she had no choice. The girl offered to help Eda back to the Owl House and grab more elixirs for her to drink. By the time that whole ordeal was done and was able to fall asleep in her bed, she did not dream. She only had her thoughts to keep her company. 

🌟🌟🌟

Luz was not ready for the next day. Upon first entering the mighty halls of the magic school, she noticed the walls, lockers, and even ceilings were all plastered with animated posters of varying designs. But she knew they had one thing in common: propaganda. The human took a closer look and saw that all these posters were aimed towards her.

'You can't spell "LOSER" without LUZ'

'Down with Noceda, Up with Stars' 

'Say NO to Noceda and say HUZZAM to the Prince of POWER! STARS FOR CHAMPION'

The air dents populating the halls and classrooms all taunted the girl in every conceivable way possible. Luz noticed a common theme with the students; some admired and respected the poster while she also noticed a young baby-class kid with tendrils handing out presumably homemade pins. They all spelled in bold "LUZER 'NOWAY'DA" but sometimes would spin to show an artist's rendition of Valentine being his prim and proper playboy-self. However, Luz had to admit. The way they crafted her name into an insult was very clever. 

Undoubtedly that didn't help cease the salt sprinkled into her wound. The girl had her school uniform's hood over her face the majority of the day but was proven rather worthless because of her multi-colored school outfit. Many a student mocked her, flashed their crude pins at her, and other random acts of rudeness. 

'Go back to your little shack, human'

'You stink, Noceda'

'No way, NOceda'

'Valentine's the true Hexside Champion. Not you sack of fleshy trash'

'Go be a human somewhere else'

'These games are no place for a round ears like you'

The teachers did not want any part of this but still gave her very disapproving glances. 

"Please don't stare," Luz would often say to them, however it always fell on deaf ears. 

Luz made her way in the school's courtyard to settle down after another rough day at school. And it was another day she could not find her friend Amity or even Willow or Gus. She was alone, again. But that wasn't the only emotion she had tormenting her. Luz felt anger, steering anger towards Willow. Don't get her wrong, she was more sad that her good plant witch friend is livid at her for being picked illegally. Yet at the same time, the Latina couldn't help but notice she was upset and disappointed in the lack of information Willow gave about Eda in the first. 

Upon entering the courtyard, it was filled with many students who all stared at her, laughed, gawked, bullied and humiliated her. But Luz didn't want that to get to her. She looked around while simultaneously ignoring the hurtful comments until she had her eyes glued on a certain student. It was Valentine in all his glory, sitting on some benches while surrounded by his massive pack of friends. They were all admiring the pins and posters an anonymous student made for the whole school to be decorated in. 

Perfect! Now's my chance! 

Suddenly, all the friends of Valentine swerved their heads around and saw Luz who barely even made a step. They smirked at one another and began snickering amongst themselves while Valentine did not care much to look up from the novel he was reading. 

"Well well well," a witch boy with slicked-back hair scoffed. "Impeccable timing. It appears ROUND EARS wants to join in on the fun." 

The air proceeded with the sounds of haute mocking laughter. THAT got Valentine's attention. He placed the book that he was reading and stood up taller than any of his friends. 

Luz did not flinch or back off. She had a task to carry out. 

The human witch approached them with little to no fear and attempted to stand strong among them. Other students around them watched in amusement and intrigue. Just like the gossipy, drama-loving filthy teenagers they were. But before Luz could say anything, two other students in Valentine's posse grabbed onto her shoulders tight and forced her deeper into their group but not towards their leader. 

"H-Hey! Let go!" Luz growled angrily. 

"What's the matter, human," a mantis girl sneered. "Don't like us pushing you around?" 

"No matter how much you hide your quite cute little ears into your hoodie, you deserve all of this," another witch--a horned lizard boy--pointed to all the posters and pins. 

"Listen, I don't want to cause a witch fight," Luz tried to sway the mood. "I just wanna talk to Valentine." 

A swift punch in the gut followed after her request; Luz keeled over and coughed. More laughter roared. 

"You? Talk to Valentine? The TRUE Hexside Champion?" Another lizard boy (probably the other's brother) scoffed. "Keep dreaming, bastard! With your status right now, you're only good enough to get kicked and prodded by us!" 

"You wanna admire more of our accessories?" The slick haired-boy gawked. 

"No," Luz hissed through her abdominal pain. "And for the record, those posters you're spreading around are starting to no longer be funny." 

"The FUCK did you just say about MY posters?!" A unicorn boy screeched. 

Uh oh. 

"Did you just insult Alastair's works of ART, you piece of shit?!" The mantis girl gasped. 

"Oh, you absolutely deserve a swift beat up now, HUMAN TRASH," a witch with four black horns said with venom in her words. 

Luckily, before any of them could land any severely painful blows on the poor human girl, Valentine--with a look of pure anger and disgust--stepped through his wall of friends and grabbed very harshly at his friends' wrists. He managed to use one of his wings to draw a spell circle that tied them down and away from Luz. 

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa," Valentine swatted the others away and stopped to the human. "What did I JUST say about attacking Champions, huh? ESPECIALLY her??" 

"Oh come ON, Val," another witch--a boy with curly hair--groaned. "You seriously want to stand up for this...creature? She's not even supposed to be in championship!"

"She insulted the craftsmanship, my posters AND sense of humor," the unicorn boy fussed, crushing the quills and paper in his hooves. 

"From what I gathered on the way side, the poor girl only wishes to have a little chat with me and nothing more," Valentine spoke through a strained and angry smile. "So why not, oh, I don't know...hang up more posters or something around the edge of campus. That'll be all." 

"Valentine, you can't be serious-" a female witch--with very wavy hair--tried to object but was instantly (and harshly) interrupted. 

"That. Will. Be. All." The bat scolded each of his friends individually. He took a breath to calm himself down. 

"I will join you all in a few moments. This talk shouldn't drag for too long. Now GO." 

All the members of Valentine's pack collectively groaned, some rolled their eyes; with the help of the older lizard, the crowd were all corralled into a cluster of hormonally unstable, vengeful teenagers. 

"Ugh, fine," the older lizard huffed. "Tormenting the human was growing old anyways. Let's get outta here." 

And with that, Valentine's friends all collected their bearings and barged their way out of the courtyard. Valentine watched on as they left like barbaric warriors going off to war, sighed annoyingly and then turned his gaze back to Luz. He offered her a hand, and the human hesitantly joined her hands with his. 

"I apologize for their behavior," the bat said with guilt. "They are not...the most CARING of folk." 

"Tha-Thank you for helping me." Luz thanked, her voice was small. 

"Yes yes, of course," the bat twirled his fingers and an ice pack appeared;- he gave it Luz who swiftly pressed it against her tummy. 

"Now. You wished to speak with me on something?" 

The human nodded, wincing afterwards from the pain in her stomach. 

"Well then, alright, sure." Valentine motioned Luz to an area under a tree. "Okay. Let us make this quick. My group descends into anarchy when not properly supervised."

Luz nods but before she speaks, she looks around to make sure no one is eavesdropping. To their kick no one was paying much attention to the two teenagers standing underneath a tree together so Luz decides to spill the beans. 

"Monsters," she said, plain and simple. "The first challenge is monsters." 

Valentine's eyes flew open. "Monsters? That's...off."

"And that's not all," the girl led Valentine on. "When I saw the monsters...somewhere in the woods...I-....I think the Emperor's Coven is rigging the games." 

Wider did Val's eyes go; many a time he opens his mouth to speak but nothing came out. He looked frantically all over the place before resting his gaze back onto the human. 

"A-A-...Are you s-serious?" He stuttered- Luz nodded silently. 

Valentine ran his fingers through his hair. "Well. That c-certainly is--Ahem!--something...heh heh. Wh-Where did you learn about this stuff?"

"Eda spoke to me about it. Near the woods where we live," Luz explained quietly. "She originally sent me a note to meet her there but....Willow...s-she had it and gave it to me." 

The bat nodded along. "Did she explain the note to you? Willow, I mean?"

Luz hung her head and shook it. Valentine made a clearly concerning hum in response. 

"That's....That's not good, Luz," the bat's tone was also concerning. "Willow didn't tell you everything, yes? So, indirectly, she lied to you." 

The Latina felt more anger and sadness boil up inside her. She couldn't believe the idea that her friend Willow lied to her. Gus DID say she read the note herself but didn't pass it off to Gus to tell Luz yesterday. 

"Willow....." Luz spoke ever so quietly to herself in a hurt voice. It broke Valentine's heart. 

"I...I should tell Gilda and Loki. They MUST know about it." 

"Wait, Val, NO," Luz yelps suddenly. She shuts her mouth quickly as some students nearby begin to stare. 

"Hey Hey Hey! Don't worry," Valentine waved his hands defensively. "I don't plan on telling them everything. That information is obviously private to you and Edalyn...and probably your friends."

"S-Sorry from yelling," Luz awkwardly laughed. "But thank you for understanding." 

The bat nodded. "Anything for you, my friend." 

The human beamed. "You see me as a...friend???" The handsome bat laughed. 

"Haha- well yes, of course. I've admired you and your prowess the moment you've entered the Boiling Isles! I have loads of respect for you."

A voice called loudly from outside the courtyard, gaining Valentine's attention. "HEY VAL! MONIKA AND DEREK ARE TACKING POSTERS ON THE BEATING BIRCHES AND NOW THEY'RE GETTING DANGLED BY THEIR HEELS! YOU HAVE TO COME SEE!!" 

"Aaaand there's the anarchy," the bat laughed. "I should depart now. Hope no one gives you anymore of a hard time. Hang in there, human." 

The bat ruffled the human girl's hair in the same way he did with Amity and went on his way. Luz felt a smile etch across her face; she felt good about having someone to look to especially with what's happening at school. But the time was short lived when Luz heard another voice calling from in the tree. 

"Well ain't that cute? The bat boy thinks a little pep talk would change things. Adorable~" 

It was Boscha. Luz scowled at the three-eyed girl. 

"Nice try, Boscha," she scoffed. "But a little teasing won't get me to be mad at you. That ship has long sailed."

Boscha's expression stiffened. "Y'know, my parents and I have been placing bets about you last night. My father thinks you won't last for 20 minutes. My mother think you won't last 5." 

The three-eyes witch leaped down from the tree and landed with grace in front of the annoyed human girl. Boscha snickered. 

"It's a shame, to be honest. You're great and all, but I was REALLY hoping to pin some snails on Amity. My parents had little faith in her in the first place-" 

"You leave her OUTTA THIS, BOSCHA," Luz lashed out. 

People in the courtyard began to stare again but this time, Luz didn't give a damn. Mess with her friends, especially during this time, is the last straw. 

"I thought you were done bullying me and my friends," the human girl growled and narrowed her eyes. "You're just repeating your mistakes!" 

"Oh, pleeaaaase~" Boscha scoffed. "Do you really still consider Amity, Gus, and Willow your FRIENDS??? Don't make me laugh, Round Ears. They clearly don't want anything to do with you. NO ONE DOES!!" 

Attention from other students began to rise and many got to their feet to surround the little scene going on. Some teachers wandering in the halls stopped and looked cute over to see the swarm of teenagers surrounding two others in the middle. Among the authority was Reagan who scowled and began walking closer though stayed hidden. 

"You're alone in this one, Luz. No one to have your back, no one to boost your spirits. That's how the games work, after all." 

"Boscha, I'm warning you," Luz got it a defensive position and held out some glyphs. "Don't make me hurt you-"

"Hm?" The three-eyed witch cocked an eyebrow and smirked. "And how's your little paper magic gonna do, huh? Give me a paper cut?" 

Boscha grabbed ahold of one of Luz's light glyph and tore it in half. Luz attempted to grab her hands away from her bag but the three-eyed witch kept tearing each and every glyph she could snatch. 

"¡No! ¡Detener!" Luz cried out, but the witch won't stop. 

"Face the facts, Luz," Boscha sneered. "You're alone and no one's gonna do anything for you. You might as well just croak over and die." 

"THAT IS ENOUGH OUT OF YOU, SPOILED BRAT," Reagan came rushing out from the shadows, twirling his finger as he pushed his way forcibly through the crowd of children. 

Boscha felt herself physicallly morphing into something while her body was engulfed into a cloud of cyan blue-tinted smoke. And after a minute, the young witch appeared again but with the body of a rat covered in many eyeballs. But her head remained the same except not as accurately proportioned. Boscha took quick wind of this and screeched in horror.

"MY BODY!!" The girl cried out. Reagan levitated her using his own fingers, and she felt weightless in his spell. 

"Y-YOU LET GO OF ME!!!" Boscha followed up with a shrill tone. It fell on deaf ears--Reagan took pleasure in using the Controlling Trance Curse to guide Boscha all over the courtyard with little regard of her pleas. 

"Manipulative, foul blue bloods," the frog witch growled. "I know one when I see 'em." 

Then came the shocked laughter. Students neither in Valentine nor Boscha's friend groups began to slowly laugh and mutter playfully with one another. It really escalated when Reagan forced the witch into a tree and scamper amongst the trees. Luz, however, did not find this funny. Even though her mind was thinking the exact opposite of how she felt. The shenanigans caused by Mouse Boscha drew the attention of the baby class's arachnid teacher walking quietly in the halls with her toddler classmates close behind. She turned and saw all the commotion and decided to intervene. Her little ones followed. 

"D-Diablo...!" The spider lady spoke breathlessly; she grabbed hard onto Reagan's shoulder using all four arms. "Professor Diablo, what are you DOING??!" 

Reagan replied but not looking at her with a simple, "Teaching." 

The spider lady noticed the small creature Reagan was enthusiastically dangling in front of the other students. 

"I-Is that a student??" She gasped in horror. 

Reagan blinked. "...Technically, it's a mouse." 

"So help me Titan, if you don't let me go, I WILL BEAT YOU TO DEATH!!" Boscha's harsh words cut through the air; the laughter subsided for a moment. 

"Yeesh, a feisty one," Reagan noted. 

"REAGAN 'LIZARD-MAN' DIABLO," the baby class teacher growled. "You turn that poor student back THIS instant, or Principal Bump will be hearing about this."

The frog witch stared blankly at the other witch before sighing annoyingly and twirling his finger. Boscha was finally released from that feeble, disease-filled body and flopped on the floor in her true body. The arachnid teacher bent down by her side and provided all four arms to boost the girl up. While the woman carried the girl out of the courtyard and into the halls, Boscha turned to Reagan and Luz with a look of murderous rage. 

"Th-This isn't over, you disgusting FREAKS," the three-eyed girl roared. "I hope a griffin scoops you up and mutilates your guts!!" 

"BOSCHA STEPPENSOL!!" The teacher scolded. "Such HARSH words towards two...mostly innocent folk! I will be speaking to the principal about ALL this!" 

The students left to continue their last activities while Luz decided to head off back to the Owl House on her own. However, a scarred hand tightly gripped her shoulder and kept her stationary. 

"You. Miss Noceda." Reagan said firmly. "Come with me. 'need to speak with ya." 

Luz was suspicious, but she assumed she wasn't in trouble. Reagan DID stand up for her; albeit in a very degrading, harmful way. The girl nodded. 

"Um, yeah...okay. Lead the way." The older witch took the girl by the hand and both individuals entered the halls. 

They walked in complete silence for a few moments until they stood in front of a rather ruined door. Upon opening, the room was much bigger than it looked from the outside. Bookshelves lined the walls, a half dozen lanterns lit up the room with a deep green glow and a desk covered in clutter was up against a stone wall. There were some stacks of paper, power glyphs, and other miscellaneous stuff. But the one thing that stuck out like a sore thumb to Luz was the closet near all the clutter. 

It rattled and jostled around like a wild animal was locked inside there for days. Luz could've swore she faintly heard some screaming and cries for help until Reagan swiftly slammed his fist in the closet door. The screaming stopped after that. The girl tried to speak but the old witch spoke before her.

"Ya' don't wanna know what's behind that closet door, kid. Some powerful spells in there. Makes ya...er, hear things ya don't wanna hear." 

Well then, note taken, the girl thought to herself. 

The old man removed his eyepatch and in extension his robotic eye and began to clean it. He groaned and muttered to himself while washing away grime and dust upon his eye. He stopped when he looked up at the girl just standing idly against the wall. 

"Well, aren't yer legs getting tired?? Sit down, you little twerp!" Reagan lashed out. 

The human nodded shyly and pulled up a chair to watch him brush away the dust and filth again. The old witch huffed. 

"Y'know, I never did agree to the name 'lizard-man'," he snorted. "They know damn well I'm a horned bullfrog, NOT a lizard." 

"Reagan, I...I thought the whole reason you dragged me here was you wanted to talk with me?" Luz quietly reminded the grumpy frog. Reagan looked up once more and huffed. 

"Yes yes, talk," he cleared his throat but also twirled his finger to cast a spell on himself. "Right. A young lady I met earlier today was wondering if...If you were doing alright." 

Luz perked up slightly. "Wait, what's? Really? Who?"

"Ehhhh, don't remember her name all too well..." The old frog scratched behind his horns. "Though. I DO remember her having straight hair. Golden eyes.....uh, always carries books around with 'er-"

The human witch smiled and sighed happily. "Amity." 

"She heard about the whole incident yesterday and apparently was sorry she couldn't find ya," Reagan continued, picking at his teeth. "She didn't wanna annoy ya, though. Which is....sweet?" 

"Amity always was one who minded my personal space," Luz lighted to herself. "Is she doing okay??" 

"Don't know," Reagan shrugged. "All she wanted me t' tell ya was she worried for you. But I have some more stuff to discuss." The bullfrog straightened his back in his rickety wooden chair. 

"You nervous? For the first challenge I mean?" 

Luz averted her eyes. "I-...yes. Very much so. I am TEEMING with anxiety actually! This is so much new information and crazy stuff and-Ugh! The Boiling Isles is such a wonderful place and terrifying stuff is nothing new to me, but I didn't expect to be unwillingly STUCK doing i-"

"Okay okay, you little girl, calm down," Reagan huffed impatiently. "But I do understand where yer coming from. It is a fact many have died in the Games. But...I don't think you fully understand what's happening."

"Well, YEAH! I'm kinda in the dark here, Diablo," Luz shouted and had a 'well duh' look in her eyes. "I don't know where the first challenge is gonna be. I don't even know if glyph magic is gonna be allowed or not!!" 

Reagan raised a brow and gestured with one hand for Luz to come to him. She obeyed and went to him, bending down to his level. The frog lodged his robotic eye back into his empty socket and opened his mouth to speak, 

"The Emperor said nothing about not using glyphs against monsters. Nor did he say anything about staffs. You DO have a staff, right?" 

Luz's eyes widened. So she CAN use the original magic of the Isles. And best of all, she could borrow Owlbert to help her out some of the challenge. Luz found her opening and gained some confidence. Though, one thing didn't add up.

How did Reagan know of the monsters?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow okay!! It's been a very long time since I've updated this thing!! I am so so sorry for not updating in a while. School got back in session and it was kicking my ASS BIG TIME!!! 
> 
> But good news! Chapter 7 is being worked on right now and this chapter is (obviously) done so I hope you like it!
> 
> I hope my mini-hiatus didn't find anyone off...


	7. The First Trial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Violence, blood, graphic depiction of injuries, harm towards animals, A CRAP TON OF SWEARING

By daybreak, Luz and the other three champions arrived at Hexside only to be ushered into a tiny Victorian-esque carriage pulled by half a dozen snowy-white Perytons. Their clown-car of a chauffeuring service took them to a place the Latina knew far too well. Under the clouds was a massive ruined colosseum drowned by snow and icicles large enough to even impale a dragon. Luz recognized this place to be the Knee of the Titan, the last place where she fought the Slitherbeast to save the Blights twins and her mentor. AND the place where she discovered her ice spell. 

The carriage landed with a firm thud on the ground, the four champions leaving the small vehicle and entering a large tent already covered in a day's worth of snow. The perytons pulling the carriage breaker to chew on some exposed grass. Luz was surrounded by the other champions but she was lost in her thoughts. They ranged from being beyond the stable mint of anxiety to her anger. Her anger of her best friend lying. Whether Willow did it on purpose or not is unknown, but regardless, the Latina was not happy. 

"I can't believe it..." She muttered to herself. "Willow. Lying? Do...Do those words even mix?? Did she mean to...or was the paper THAT jumbled up and ruined....? Unless-.." Luz stopped and scoffed. 

"Oh come on, Noceda! Snap out of it! Willow would never keep stuff from you just to put you in danger!! ....Could she?" 

Just as she kept walking, Luz accidentally ran into someone in front up of her while consumed by her thoughts. She ended up almost crashing on the floor while the other figure only stumbled forward a bit. Upon turning around did Luz recognize her as non other than Willow herself. Except she was all alone. Luz suspected Gus had gone ahead to the coliseum early. But that was besides the point. 

"S-sorry...." Luz said very quietly, averting her gaze.

"Did you say something?" Willow asked coldly. 

"No," Luz answered almost immediately. "You probably...were just hearing things." 

Willow sighed. "Yeah. Probably." 

The plant witch was preparing to dust herself off and leave before her friend spoke up again. 

"You lied to me." 

Willow rotated her body around but said nothing. 

"You KNEW what was on that letter. You KNEW what kind of stuff would be heading my way. And yet you LIED to me." 

"Come on, Luz. Don't go assuming I wanted to do this." Willow rolled her eyes. 

"Then WHY DIDN'T you tell me what the rest of the note said??" Luz interjected. 

"I was trying to protect you! You are naïve and blind to many things about our society! I never wanted to hurt you or do any of that-"

"But a little head's up would've been fabulous!" The champions from afar were watching. Each one had a different emotion on their faces. 

"I can't give you EVERYTHING! I didn't even know what the first challenge was, even with the note! Who knows?? Maybe you didn't read the note well enough! Maybe it was some COMPLETELY UNRELATED reason! You saw the note! It was clearly of rough shape, even when I got it, it was less than desirable!" 

Luz was fuming. "Then you could've told me that! It could've saved me a death sentence AND an almost killer attack from a RABID OWL BEAST! If you have a problem with me just say it, Willow!!" 

"JUST SHUT UP AND FACE THE FACTS THAT YOU SCREWED UP BIG TIME WHEN YOU WROTE YOUR NAME, YOU DUMBASS!!!" 

The swear that was heard around the Isles- that was enough to silence both girls. Luz looked at Willow with a look like a deer in headlights. Willow had to take a few moments to process what she said before gasping quite audibly and clasping her hands over her mouth. 

"....oh Titan....." Willow squeaked. "...what have I done? Luz-please don't think I-"

Luz shook her head and scowled. "No. It's fine. If you think of me like that, why don't you just....just stay away from me? Please..."

Willow reached her hand out but quickly retracted it and resumed her snow-cold demeanor from before. 

"Gladly." The plant witch--hugging herself--left the scene without a word. Luz did the same. The three champions were waiting for her outside still. 

"Hey Dill-weed," Gilda snorted. "Th' hell was that about?" 

Valentine placed a hand on the dragon's shoulder. "Give her some space." 

"Eh. Didn't want anything to do with the human anyways." Gilda shrugged. "C'mon, you dumb golems! It's changing time!" 

The champions entered the tent to change and await their first trial. 

🌟🌟🌟

Only a few hours have passed, and the coliseum was packed full of school students and their teachers, and the assortment of residents who were in the area. Among these hundreds of individuals were the Blights, the delinquent kids and Gus & Willow--all dressed in winter appropriate attire. Amity couldn't help but just stare quizzically at her older siblings who were wandering the stands with boxes filled to the brim with snails. 

"PLACE YOUR BETS!!! COME HERE AND PLACE YOUR BETS!!" Edric called out. 

"YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO! AND ONLY FOR 10 SNAILS! ....no refunds." Emira announced enthusiastically. 

"WHO WILL IT BE, FOLKS?? VALENTINE STARS--OUR HANDSOME TALENTED BAT BOY OF ILLUSIONARY WONDERS?! - godsIhopeitishim."

"OR HOW ABOUT OUR OTHER ROSTER SUCH AS THE QUEEN OF MEAN FROM GLANDIS ,GILDA, OR LOKI, THE WARRIOR JOCK OF SAINT EPIDERM! OR EVEN--TO ADD SOME FLAVOR--LUZ THE HUMAN?!" 

"Ed. Em." Amity began. "What in all the Titian's rib bones are you doing?? You're making my ears want to die." 

"Why, we're placing bets, dear Mittens," Emira smirked, tangling Amity's hair. 

"Em and I decided adding entertainment for the locals through ruthless money-betting would bring some much-needed pizzazz to this old tradition," Edric added. 

"Well could you spread your 'pizzazz' somewhere else??" Amity barked. "Some of us are waiting patiently for the trial to begin!!" 

"Hey hey hey, Blight," Viney argued calmly. "Don't be so harsh towards your sibs. They're just harmlessly gaining money for placing bets that probably won't even count in the end."

"See?? Even Vinester knows true fun when she sees it~" Emira poked at her younger sister's face - Amity quickly protested with a nip from her fangs. 

"Well come on! Want to choke up those extra pocket snails you neglected to use??" Edric shook around the box full to the brim with snails. "Wanna place bets, now's your chance!"

"Sure. Got some snails right here," Viney tossed in ten snails. "My bets are on Valentine. He's humble but FIERCE. I admire that." 

"Thank you, good patron~" Edric did a dramatic twirl over to Gus. "Aaaaand how about you, good little boy??" 

The young illusionist chucked some spare snails and a jewel into the box. 

"Oooooooh. Exotic!" Edric admired the gem.

"My snails're on Luz," he said excitably. "Val is cool and all, but Luz is my friend. I can't stay mad at her." 

"Good choice~" Emira purred. 

"Ah shit, I shoulda went with her," Viney slapped her frontal lobe lightly. 

"I wish I had money with me," Jerbo sighed. Barcus woofed in agreement. 

"You already got your snails betted, Viney, so why bother changing now?" Willow huffed. 

Emira and Edric looked over Amity's shoulders and to a pouting Willow facing the other way. Em turned back to Amity. 

"What's up with garden girl?" The older Blight whispered to her sister. 

"I am...not sure?" Amity answered equally as quiet. "She was like this the moment Ed, Em and I arrived. Only Gus really knows what's up with her, but he refused to tell." 

"Hey, I value the safety and privacy of my friends," Gus interjected. "I may be a child, but I'm not stupid enough to gossip around!" 

"Lemme guess...Luz?" Viney asked. 

Willow furrowed her face and groaned. "....Maybe." 

Viney rolled her eyes. "Once things get going, I'm gonna need a word with you. And...maybe not the best around Blight #3 over here." 

Amity was silent but then remembered something. "OH TITAN I FORGOT! LUZ! I-I'll be right back!!" 

The green-haired witch hastily stood up and ran out of the stands while trying to slither her way through masses of people. That including some reporters and the principals who were watching over the area. A minute later, the empty spot was filled in by Eda who leaped off of her staff in an unintentional fashion. She was no longer in her Owl Beast form, and instead was adorned in her tradition cold weather clothing but with an added dark red hooded-cape. King was fast asleep and curled up deep in the bowels of Eda's massive hair. 

"Howdy Owlets!!" she happily cried. "Who's ready to watch poor saps--and my good girl Luz--fight monsters??" The owl lady looked over to see a still very clearly upset Willow sulking away from the group. 

"Uh. Did...something happen....with her?" 

🌟🌟🌟

The champions all sat away from one another in this massive tent awaiting for their next orders. The air was already filled with tension, however that suspense was shattered when a bellowing roar similar to that of a deep-toned war horn rumbling in the air. The champions looked to one another with expressions of scared confusion. The champions all were decked out in new attire for this specific trial. They wore long, wooly sweaters and leathery jackets decorated with golden zippers and two stripes running down each side. 

Luz's outfit had the same colors as Hexside's recognizable mascot colors but she also had a long, extremely soft scarf and dark black boots. The human girl sat in the very back of the tent with her body against one of the wooden stilts, holding her phone to her chest. It was silent until she got a buzz. Luz opened her tired, depressed eyes and looked down at the screen. It was a text from her mother, evident from the smiling picture of an older Latina woman. 

Mama: Buenos Dias, mija! Missing you lots! How are you doing today? ❤️

Luz stared blankly and then let out a broken, shaky breath. She texted back. 

Luz: Hola, Mamí. I'm...not doing so good this morning.

Mama: ¡Oh no! What happened, Cariño?

The girl hesitated before texting. 

Luz: There's...people at...camp that think I did something bad when I didn't. I'm just....Mamí. I'm really scared. I don't know what to do! Everyone is mad at me and they HATE ME!

Luz was crying now - Valentine could see that from across the tent. 

Mama: Mija, listen to me carefully. You have to breathe, Cariño. Breathe. 

Luz: Okay...

The young girl did as she was told and breathed a few times. The tears slowed down and slowly she felt her composure come back. 

Mama: Did you breathe, Mija? 

Luz: Yes. 

Mama: Remember to always take deep breaths when you are upset. Now listen to me very carefully, okay? 

A text took a little while to send but it came to Luz's surprise as a very pleasant one. 

Mama: Se valiente pequeña. You are only a young girl. No one is going to hate you forever. You will stand up for yourself and you will prove you are not to blame. I believe in you, Mija. 

Luz cracked a tiny smile onto her face and texted back. 

Luz: Muchas Gracias, Mamí. 

Mama: I have to go now. Work does not take a break! Espero que te sientas mejor cariño. I miss you and I love you, Mija. 

Luz: Te extraño mucho, Mamí. I love you too ❤️

After closing her phone and slumping more against the poll, Luz was alerted by the sound of a quiet 'psst'. She rose to her feet and scanned the area. None of the champions seemed to notice the small sound and we're just focusing on their own business. When she began to walk over to the tent's entrance, the human witch heard again the 'psst'. She saw the entrance of the tent crack open, and at last a voice whispered. 

"Luz?"

"Amity??" Luz was stunned and happy to hear the young Blight’s voice. "Oh my gosh. I-I can't believe it's YOU." 

"H-Hey, I'm so so sorry for not...seeing you at all," Amity confided. "I just...didn't want t-to...distress you at all." 

"Oh no no no, Amity, it's fine." Luz reassured the Blight girl. 

"Well...How are you doing?" Amity asked. 

"How I'm doing? Well, I'M TERRIFIED!" Luz gave a very nervous breath of laughter. "What a wonderful time to BE ALIVE!" 

"I...I'm sorry about all this. You...and the others, they don't deserve to feel like this. You don't deserve to feel like this." 

"Hey it's no big deal! This is BEYOND stressful for me, but I'm kinda glad it was me and not you."

Amity blushed - she cleared her throat. "I....I might be mistaken but-...I heard you got into a fight yesterday. Is...Is that true?" 

The human smacked her lips. "Correction. FightS." Luz put more emphasis on the 's' in the word. 

"No....really?" Amity gasped. 

"I'm not lying. I got into a tussle with Valentine's friends, and even after I patched stuff up with Val, Boscha began pointing fingers. Reagan came to defend me but it wasn't...right. Boscha seemed to be EXTRA horrible this time around."

"Well, I suppose that's Boscha for you," Amity ran her index finger through her hair. "She's always been the one to keep grudges. Hell, I think she STILL hates this one kid's guts after he pushed her off the swings five years ago!" The Blight girl laughed to herself. 

"You think that's bad, Amity, wait 'till you heard the little intrusion I had with Willow-" Luz snapped her mouth shut with both hands when she saw Amity shoot her eyes at her. 

"Wait. I head about this kinda from Gus. What did Willow do to you?" Amity was growing curious but angry. 

"Well, I got mad at her because she didn't tell me all the information on a note you gave her," Luz confessed. "And then we yelled and Willow called me a 'dumbass' before we both went our separate ways."

Amity blinked. "She...called you a...dumbass?" 

"...yes?" Luz tried to smile shyly. "But she didn't-" 

Then there were the individuals cracks of knuckles. "Well. She's crossed a line. She is DEAD." 

"Amity no." Luz grabbed onto the green-haired girl's wrists. "It's okay. She was just...mad and misguided. Besides, she's not only person in the entire Boiling Isles to want ME dead. Everyone does. Boscha. Val's friends. ....Willow. Even the other classmates want me dead! Did-Did I somehow deserve all of this? Like, do people hate humans THAT much to the point where they wouldn't care if I got massacred??" 

"That's not true-" Amity was cut off. 

"Do-Do....Do you see me like that? Do the others see my like that?" Luz's voice was very small and hurt. 

Amity did not think on what to do next. She opened her arms up and instantly jumped into Luz, wrapping them around the human girl’s body tight tight tight; she buried her head in the crook of Luz's neck. Luz, meanwhile, was stunned. For the first time in EVER, it was her friend Amity who initiated the hug. She was pleasantly surprised and accepted the hug with open arms. Literally. Luz rested her chin onto Amity's shoulder and let a tiny sigh of relief escape her lips. The other champions saw this little display from across the tent and didn't know how to react. Valentine, however, smiled from ear-to-ear. 

"Just...remain calm and remember to use your magic," Amity whispered from Luz's neck. "Also...please don't die."

"I make no promises, querida," Luz chuckled. "But hey. For you, I will."

Amity felt her entire face light up like a red Christmas ornament. Suddenly, there came the flashing of a bright light from outside the other end of the tent. Valentine rapidly blinked his eyes as the others did the same. A kappa lady carrying a large old-fashioned camera was there standing in the end, her smiling abnormally wide. 

"Young love~" she swooned. "Don't you think, Perry?" 

"Indeed, Rhea, my dear," Perry Porter smiled. 

"Wait! Y-Young love-" Amity took wind of the situation and swiftly released Luz from their grasp. 

"AH!" She crashed to the ground. 

"Who? M-Me?? Young love...with-with her? Nah, no! No no no! Hahaha, don't be silly! We're just...we're, uhhh, GOOD FRIENDS! YES! Just good...friends. Who hug...a lot."  


Amity nervously chuckled and stammered for a good few minutes while Perry looked awfully confused, and Valentine and Gilda were trying to control their urge to belt out in laugher. As to why they were gonna laugh, that was for two different reasons. 

"What brings you reporter filth here?" Loki snorted. "This tent is for champions...and GUESTS only." 

"Oh come now, Loki," Perry interjected. "We are only here to get some information from the champions themselves. And the little display Miss Luz and her 'good friend' made could NOT be brushed aside." 

Luz rose back up from the ground and gripped her stomach that was still sore from the punch she received. She dusted herself off and noticed a few more figures enter the already crowded tent. The principal of Glandis Julius Stars and a unknown illusionist from the Illusion Coven was standing beside him. He had light brown skin with deep red hair slicked back. His hands were occupied by a stack of over seven dozen cards. 

"Alright, Mr. Porter," Julius calmly spoke. "Go on. It is almost time for the picking! Don't you have a stand to run?"

"Now now now, Mr. Stars, I mean no intrusion," Perry waved his hands. "In fact, I came here to speak with you about something!" 

"Oh, um...well, I suppose if it's important," the bat stroked his head. "My partner Pisces will take care of the rest of the directions. Follow him." 

"Alright alright, I need all four of you champion folk to step towards me while I explain the rules," the illusionist witch said as he twirled the cards in his hands. 

Amity saw it was the time to leave so she gave another quick hug to Luz and waved goodbye. 

"Remember. Don't die." Amity chuckled and left out the backside of the tent. Luz blushed, waving back and joined the other three champions. 

"Gather around, scoundrels. Gather 'round." Pisces tricked his cards once more before clearing his throat and beginning his long speech. 

"Out there is the BIGGEST part to your first trial. The coliseum, thanks to powerful illusionist magic, can shift its appearance to various different environments based on the monster of your choosing. Your mission is to collect one of four items given to you in your chosen environment, while ALSO trying to combat your monster. Simple, is it not?"

"Quick question, can you.....die?" Luz shyly asked, giving a tiny chuckle.

"Oh yes of course! It is very possible," Pisces answered in a terrifyingly jovial voice - the Latina gulped hard. 

The witch once again shuffled the cards between his fingers but instead displayed them in front of the four teenagers. They gathered closer to observe what exactly these cards were. 

"Well come on now! Pick a card, any card!" 

Valentine decided he should step up and gently took a card from the center of the thick deck. He held it to his chest. He was followed by both Loki and Gilda grabbing ahold of their own cards on the opposite sides of the maid dive deck. And lastly, Luz stared at the dozens of cards in Pisces' hands before drawing one shakily that was also in the middle. Not a second later, the illusionist took each other the four cards in his hand and scanned them. He made a few humming noises before giving them back. 

"First off, for you, Mr. Valentine Stars," Pisces combed back his hair. "You shall be fighting a Deep Blue Mountain Drake." 

"Ooooooh I have heard of this beast," Valentine gasped to himself. "Deep navy blue scales, green eyes, silver ram horns. And a fire so hot it feels like you're being frozen alive. Fascinating." 

"For you, Loki Minotonn, the Horned Hell-Wolf," Pisces announced.

"Easy," Loki scoffed. "Wolves are not big deal with my family." 

"Third in our roster, Miss Gilda Tyrannus," Pisces observed the dragon's card again. "Ah yes. The fabled Duo-Headed Thunder Vulture. A favorite of mine, if I do say so myself."

"Hell yeah, a badass thunder bird fighting a water dragon," Gilda ran her webbed fingers through her own hair. "Now THAT'S a challenge." 

Luz gulped - how could they be so calm about all this? Then again, she was a human who just got her a few months ago. These three clearly had much more experience than her. Then came her turn; Pisces took a gander at her card again and gasped. 

"And last but not least, you have the Tyto-Bear, Miss Luz. Huh. A bold choice." 

What? A Tyto-Bear? Luz had never heard of such a beast. And while she was beyond curious about these strange creatures existing in the Boiling Isles, she'd rather gulp than pester to find out more. 

The sound of bells and casting spells can be heard outside, as well as the collective cheers and hollers of spectators in the benches outside. Luckily Luz knew a little bit of something about this first trial. It was age based. The oldest of the champions will be drawn first to compete, then the second and so on so forth. Luz and the two others sat down in their own little territories inside the tent while Valentine stretched his wings and prepared for his entry. Perry and Julius had just finished conversing when the time had come for the trial to begin. 

"I believe that is my cue," Perry proudly said - he made his way via regulated teleportation to his reporting stand. "Ladies, Gentlemen, and non-binary folk in the crowd! I am ECSTATIC to welcome the start the First Trial of the Boiling Isles Championship Games AND the entrance our first competitor. The pride and joy of Hexside School of Magic and Demonics, please give a round of wonderful support to the talented, the handsome, the fashionable VALENTINE STARS!!" 

A wave of cheering called for the bat boy to come out. Edric yelled a pretty audible "YEAH! GO, VAL" in the lower stands, making Valentine's father chuckle heartily. 

"Well, son, they're calling you along," Julius laughed. "Good luck!" The old bat gave his son a quick kiss on the forehead and ruffled his hair.

"Father!" Valentine argued but it was clear he loved the attention. "I must be getting going now! Hey Luz!! Wish me luck!" Luz politely waved to Valentine and flashed a strained smile. 

And with the stretch of his mighty wings once more, the membranes shimmering like stars, Valentine strutted his way out. He waved and smiled at all his adoring public as he prepared his magic for battle. 

Now came the waiting game. 

🌟🌟🌟

All the performances were something spectacular to behold. 

First was, of course, Valentine against the Deep Blue Mountain Drake. The illusionist was exemplary at crafting the complex illusion of a mountainside cliff and sprawling mountain-blind vegetation to replicate the drake's natural home. His own illusion magic dazzled the school goers and the locals, dazzling displays of light blue colors and shots of powerful magic hit the beast. The drake did put up a good fight on its own, Valentine would have to add. Its icy-hot fire proved to be quite annoying and hazardous, a number of times Valentine got burned by its scorching breath. But in the end, he was the first of the four to carefully grab ahold of the desired artifact and defeat the beast after an hour of hiding, inflicting burning wounds, and intentionally impressing the crowd. Edric was beyond excited when he got to see Valentine up in person at the end of the show. And hug him and to shake his hand and all that good stuff. 

Next up was Loki, the only one who really gained the attention of Willow. When his name was merely announced, she put aside her groaning and sulking to watch totally-not-her crush perform well. The wolf was not as chaotic and harmful as the Drake, but was a bit of a pain to distract. Its paws trailed smoke wherever it went, proving it difficult to see the action most of the time. And for the majority of the match, it kept its watchful eyes on Loki as he traveled abundant the battlefield. Loki was grateful of his Construction Coven knowledge. He was naturally strong and fast, and was one impressive toolsmith. He even made an entire sword out of just the rocks scattered around the mini-habitat. By the time the monstrous fire wolf grew tired and was wrestled to near death by Loki, the long haired witch earned his prize fair and square. Willow and her friends all shouted and chanted his name - Eda remained silent. 

Then along came Gilda. To her pleasure, the battlefield was mostly transformed into a surprisingly deep lake of icy cold water with some large pointed rocks jetting up from below. The beast she fought was a massive bird, possibly 5 times bigger than the Bat Queen herself and even more deadly. It shot out boots of lightning from every feather in its wings, and its powerful squawks sounded similar to that of rumbling thunder. Gilda spent most of her time under the water but also performing her Bard magic to lull the beast into a false sense of security. Then she found her time to strike, she clawed and bit at the two-headed beast until she wrapped her muscular arms around it and dragged the monstrous thunderbird into the water. It was close to drowning before it got back up but Gilda was already one step ahead. She got her artifact and delivered a final blow to the Thunder Vulture. Amity was glaring at the dragon the whole time with a look of distaste. But Gilda was too stuck up to even see her at all. 

Luz witnessed all three of the performances so far; she had a lot of respect for each champion. Valentine's ability to distract and misdirect, Loki's raw physical energy and Gilda's ingenuity of water and song mixed with her impulsiveness. Though Luz still felt uneasy about all of this. The beasts she's seen so far had all been carnivorous, blood-thirsty monsters. They were all able to kill and were willing to kill no matter who they were given. Though they probably were just misunderstood animals forced to fight. The Emperor's Coven was involved in their capture, of course. 

Time felt like a non-existent thought, but the Latina knew it was her time to shine. Or at least, to her, she would shine. Before gathering her thoughts into a meat ball of anxiety and stress, she rose from her seat and made her way to the other end of the tent. But before she did so, she heard a swooping noise from the opposite side. Eda's staff with Owlbert included was there waiting for her in midair. Luz smiled and took the staff in hand. Upon closer inspection, she found a small note taped to the base. 

'Here's a gift for ya, kiddo! 

Try not to die, alright? It's expensive to make new staffs. And get more apprentices. 

\- Eda

Ps: I'm only kidding. About the apprentice part, I mean.' 

Luz couldn't help but laugh a little. This was definitely the type of attitude she needed from one of her companions. Eda did appear to have a lot of confidence in the girl, despite the sassy demeanor of her note. Plus, having Owlbert on her side really did help a lot. So the Latina grasped hard onto the staff, checked her pockets that were full of glyphs and finally cleared her throat. 

"Don't fail me now, Owlbert," Luz spoke softly. The Palisman looked up at Luz and gave a little coo of agreement.

Outside in the stands, Luz's mentor and friend group were growing more and more anxious. Eda looked up at the moon that can be seen through the thick sheet of blizzard clouds. 

"Man. Three shows and they felt like only a minute each," Gus acknowledged, nervously twiddling with his fingers. 

"Y'know this was fun for a while," Emira gulped. "But now I'm feeling antsy as all hell." 

"Couldn't agree with you more, sis," Edric agreed. 

"I am not ready, AT ALL," Amity shivered; her sister put a hand on her shoulder. 

"Man. Can't believe it's already Luz's time to shine," Viney blinked, leaning against Emira on the other side. "Wonder what she's gonna do. She talked to me about doing glyph magic. I wonder what that's gonna look like." 

Willow remained silent and did not look at anyone at all. Eda was the first to see this but before she could get a single word out, Viney beat her to it. 

"Okay, garden girl," Viney has had enough. "You want her dead or something, or are you just a quiet one?" Eda had to suppress an impressed noise clogging her throat. 

"N-No! That is not-...Why do YOU care?" Willow growled back. 

"Oh boy...." Jerbo hissed. 

"We wielding sass, huh?" Viney cracked her fingers. "Listen. I get it. You're upset because your goody-two-shoes buddy got her name picked illegally. I'm just as upset as you are in this case." 

"Really?" Willow drew her brows together. 

"Yep. But, hang on. I don't know about you, but Luz seems to not have wanted to be in the games in the first place. And then her name ends up being suspiciously picked. Doesn't that sound....oh, I don't know, counter productive to you?" 

Willow blinked rapidly. "W-Well-...there are...m-many explanations for-"

"Look, Willow," Viney interrupted with a tired sigh. "I know she's not some innocent little girl. Far from that. But even I can recognize what she's done is bad, and this is NOT IT. Hell, she's an honest-to-Titan person. She owns up to her mistakes and doesn't gripe or moan or lie about what she's done. I know that because she did that EXACT thing when we found out she was lying about being alone."

Willow got hit by some reality. She remembered the times Luz was mad at her and Gus for a variety of reasons. But instead of getting more mad and lashing out, she would respond with: 

'You and Willow both have all the right to be mad at me'

'No it's fine. Why don't you just....leave me alone, please?' 

"I know a thing or two more than you do, believe it or not," Viney's tone was in between being knowledgeable and somewhat arrogant. "I've only known her a month, but I just know she's not a suspect. If she wanted to get into the games and did, In fact, enter through breaking rules, don't you think she would've fessed up by now?"

The Blights looked to one another with shocked expressions. Gus, Jerbo and Barcus inclined to do the same. 

Willow remained silent for a short while. "....maybe. But why are you telling me this?"

"I'm just asking if you truly know your friend," Viney huffed. "And do you even trust her? Like, at all? Do you think hiding all this stuff from her and getting mad over nothing is gonna solve anything? Like I said, do you trust her enough to not fuck up something she KNOWS damn well is illegal and terrible on many levels?" 

Willow was again silent. The bells calling for the arrival of the next and last competitor rang through the air. The sound of feedback vibrated from the reporter's stand. Perry and Rhea were watching the illusionists on the ground begin to shape the battlefield to fit Luz's monster. 

Perry took the mic in his hand. "And last but not least, folks! Please be kind and courteous for our first ever Fourth and HUMAN champion! Put your hands, fins, or other hand-like appendages together and give it up for LUZ NOCEDA THE HUMAN!!!"

"But hey. I'm just a kid she met in Detention. What do I know?" Viney shrugged and faced her attention back to the arena. It appeared this conversation was done. 

Willow sat there still. She felt a rush of different emotions, included and not limited to sadness, relief and guilt. Oh so-terrible horrible, no-good, very bad guilt.

Luz was apologizing for something she didn't even do, the plant witch realized. She finally come to notice her own mistakes and devised a small conclusion. 

"I need to apologize to her. Properly." Willow spoke in a hushed voice. 

Eda--who just witnessed all of this--was taken back by the serious tone and leaned back in her chair. However, she had an impressed smile. 

"Well I'll be. Who knew the stoner girl had it in her. Nice work, er...Viney, was it?" 

"'Stoner'?" Viney had to snicker. "Well, I guess I can live with that. Thanks, pellets." 

"Hey hey hey. Only Jules can call me that and NOT get in trouble, you little rugrat," Eda argued in a playful manner. 

"Shh! It's starting!" Amity shushed the two and pointed down to the stadium. 

Down below, Luz hesitantly walked down into the coliseum, holding on tight to the staff. People in the stands gave polite cheers and round of clapping. Eda called out to Luz with a proud, "Knock it dead, kiddo!", earning a smile from the Latina. Amity waved at Luz and gave her a confident but shy smile. Luz did the same. The human girl took in more of the polite greetings and cheering until the whole coliseum grew quiet. And Luz was alone.

She observed her surroundings. The terrain was hilly and rocky with tall dark-barked trees sprouting from all over the place. However it did not look too wooded over for there was a massive ring of light that shined through the top of the arena. Those illusionists did a fantastic job replicating the scenery commonly found around Bonesborough. She kept a defensive stance as she trotted through the tall grass and bioluminescent flora carpeting the floor. Up ahead was a field of jagged boulders shaped in the same fashion as the mighty rib bones of the Titan. They jutted from under the mounds of snow and showy grass. Ahead, though, lay the biggest jutted rock that looked similar to an anvil, covered in a sheet of snow and icicles. 

Luz took a closer look and notice a small, golden, egg-shaped artifact lying exposed in the center of this natural illusion. The fabled artifact to collect was right in front of her, and yet no monster to be seen. 

"Huh, this looks easy," Luz said to herself, but then hummed in uncertainty. "A tad TOO easy. Well, can't just sit here and wait for something to happen." 

The Latina approached the massive rock structure carefully with staff plus Owlbert gripped much harder in her palms - a sudden swoop came from the other end of the field. It was quiet. Though Luz often found silence comforting, this instance couldn't be more opposite. 

Folks watched in anxious anticipation of what is going on below. Even Luz's Hexside friends and mentor all watched intently. 

"Ahem. May I take a seat here?" A familiar voice--Julius--asked politely to Eda. 

"Eh, sure. Whatever ya want, Jules," Eda shrugged and made room. 

The older bat kindly sat down at a comfortable distance and stared down at the area. He readjusted his spectacles. 

"That is odd. Where is that creature she was to face off against?" 

"The illusion," Eda squinted her eyes to get a better lay of the land. "Something about the scenery of it all looks awfully...familiar." She thought and then came to a conclusion.

"Wait a damn minute." The Owl Lady widened her eyes in disbelief. "Oh Titan. She better not be going against....IT." 

"What? What do you mean by 'it'?" Amity--who overheard the small conversation--asked concernedly. 

"Something tells me....this has Tyto-Bear written all over it." 

Back down below, Luz did not notice the random moments where the trees creaked and churned in the windless area. Some snow was moved out of the way. She stepped more until she noticed something peculiar in the snow. 

Footprints. And they did not look anything like the animals found back on Earth. 

"What even is a Tyto-Bear, anyways?" Luz scanned the footprints. Some of them in trailing in the snow DID appear very bear-like. She trekked onward. 

Luz began to creep up the side of the rigged rock formation. She utilized her own limbs and some spare ice glyphs to push her up quicker. The egg object was just arm's length away from her. Just as she Luz was cut off most suddenly by a powerful, heavy entity ramming into her side and right off the rock. The Latina rolled down and landed tummy-first back on the snow with a thud plus a loud whimper. Owlbert was chucked away from her. The crowd gasped at the sight of what just happened. Eda and the others tensed up quite significantly. 

"Mierda...." Luz squeaked out before rising back up. 

She was met with some more blows to her body, but got right back up on her feet to evaluate what exactly was hitting her. In front of her was something she did not expect in the slightest. The beast was massive and bulky, though somehow simultaneously moved quite gracefully like a rampaging bull. Its skin was a mess of snowy-white shaggy fur and long, torn feathers. Its entire body and limbs looked very ursine, but the most stand out-ish feature was its face. Those intelligent yet aggressive black eyes stared on with bloodlust; the face was round and feathered around the edges. That short, curved in beak. Its limbs covered in small scales like those on a bird's talons, and it technically has two pairs of wings. One pair of faux wings that were attached to the beast's front legs. The other pair was gigantic and sprouted from its back. This Tyto-Bear looked far too much like a hybrid between a polar bear and a barn owl. 

Luz realized something. Back at home, she learned lots of information about owls and other birds. Apparently, Tyto was part of the scientific name belonging to the barn owl. The Latina had to mentally face palm. It was an OWL BEAR. How could she NOT have seen that coming? Luz felt a big spike of Deja vu. 

However, she couldn't dwell. The Tyto-Bear let out a gods awful screech-roar and lunged again. This time, Luz prepared the staff in her arms, but not before dropping a ton of glyphs on the floor to activate later. But would it work? Luz had to try. 

She tapped the staff multiple times on the floor just as the Tyto-Bear bounded towards her like an angered gorilla. And to her surprise, the ice glyphs all went off with the taps and caused the beast to cower. It went around the trap but it still was met with more barrages of icy spikes as it tried to run and maul its human enemy. Luz attempted to run while the beast was preoccupied with the ice. She climbed some rocks and away from its view. The Tyto-Bear gathered its bearings and ran back at her while still perched on the rock. But now, Luz was preparing a fire spell. A small stone was atop the structure; she took it in hand and lit it up with a fire glyph. 

"Taste fire, you terrifying but actually kinda beautiful creature," Luz hastily yelled and chucked the rock hard. 

The fire scalded the monster's face, it shrieked and rammed its entire body through the thick stony structure. Luz fell once again during the collapse, but luckily, she casted a vine-based glyph just before she hit the floor. The vine grabbed onto her and also a branch of a nearby tree, flinging her away from the current area and up into the tree. She landed just a cleanly as she could, wincing again from her wound in her stomach. The Tyto-Bear--clawing at its burnt face--whined and flew up to the highest stone structure. It crouched down in a defensive position in front of the egg like object and hissed. It was unfolding its wings and was preparing enough momentum to strike Luz right out of the tree. 

This guy is really smart, Luz observed. She took a closer look and saw a dark black chain attached to its right back leg. Luz saw an opening. And all the while she devised a plan while swinging from branch to branch using vines. She needed to grab that artifact in order to pass the first trial. However, the Tyto-Bear acting so tough and protective over a fake egg did not help. And it could fly, which is bad for everyone. 

Back at the stands, the group often winced, cowered and cringed at the very violent nature of this fight. They watched Luz dodge almost lethal swings of the Tyto-Bear's claws and beak lined with razor sharp, yellow-stained teeth. Amity and Eda were possibly the most stressed out of the group. 

"Hang on," Emira squinted her eyes. "What's she doing?" The owl Lady looked down in the same direction. 

"Not sure, but that doesn't look very good," Eda answered. 

"Excuse me?" Amity whipped her head towards Eda. "What do you mean by 'doesn't look very good'??" 

"From the times I've snuck outta class to see other tracks, I've learned a thing or two in Beast Keeping. Tyto-Bears run faster than the average witch AND can climb any surface, whether it be stone or tree bark. I'm not pointin' to something that probably won't happen, but Luz is in big trouble if she thinks she can out-climb the beast."

After than info dump, Amity could do nothing but watch and gulp. 

"Agh, I can't watch!" Gus groaned, swiftly covering his eyes - Willow sat there in horror. 

Luz needed to think fast. For one, she knew the beast was part bear, and was one helluva expert climber. But on the other hand, the thing can fly, and the Latina had no time for that. She devised a not-so perfectly laid out plan and grasped back onto the staff. 

"Up, Owlbert, to that tree!" Luz commanded - a gigantic tree sprouted put on the other side of the illusionary field. 

Owlbert obeyed and spread his wings before taking off in the other direction. The Tyto-Bear spotted the girl's escape and rose into the air as well with only a few massive flaps. Luz looked behind and saw the beast slowly gaining on her. Luckily, the target tree was up ahead where she did a SHARP U-turn on Owlbert, followed by a few more fire glyphs thrown at the monster. The beast, unsurprisingly, was pissed. It repeated the human’s action, but soon found its chain and (by extent) itself stick to the trunk. 

"It's stuck! IT'S STUCK!" Amity cheered. 

"AW YEAH! GO GET IT, KIDDO!!" Eda shouted happily. Julius was clapping his hands wildly - People around the collider in were cheering and hollering and chanting her name. 

Willow was dumbfounded and found herself with a miniature shocked smile on her face. Gus was gestured by Viney to open his eyes, but he did not budge. 

"Hey, Magician boy," Edric tapped Gus' head. "The scary part is done."

"You can....reveal your eyes again," Emira sighed. 

"Nope! I've seen too many tragedy plays, and each one always has a hidden jinx," Gus argued. "So I ain't peeping!" 

Luz felt so good to hear folks no longer wronging her and mocking her for doing something she didn't mean to do. The cheers and passionate reception from the crowds really made her feel like she fit in again. The Latina saw the massive stone structure and leaped off Owlbert just at the right time to clearly land again. The egg was left untouched. Luz rushed over quickly while the beast roared several loud, shrill cries of pure frustration. The egg-shaped artifact was finally in her grasp. 

Meanwhile, the Tyto-Bear was growing weary. Its wings still beat effortlessly in the air, but due to the beast's bulky mass, it won't stay midair for long. Then it stared down at its ankle. More growls of annoyance garbled in its throat, and the Tyto-Bear began to tug hard from the tree. The mighty tree yanked backward but was soon finding itself being dragged alongside the Tyto-Bear. And just when thunk couldn't get any worse, the chain--rubbing ever so hard against the bark of the tree--snapped in two and the Tyto-Bear was free. The beast, noticing its newfound freedom, screeched with triumph and quickly took higher into the air and chased after the girl. 

"Um...Edalyn," Julius gasped. "Are my old eyes deceiving me...or did the beast's chain...snap in two?" 

"Wa-huh?" Eda sat up in the direction of where the Tyto-Bear was. The creature was gone and so was the chain. 

"Oh gods! NO!" Eda gasped. "LUZ! GET OUTTA THERE!!" 

The girl in question clutched the egg-like artifact in her right hand lovingly while her left carried her staff. Luz didn't even notice the beast--now free of the chain--coming right at her like a dive bomber. When she DID see it, she yelped and crouched down to the floor as the beast missed its attack. The Tyto-Bear skidded across the jagged stone but rose up again and charged at the girl. 

"¡Dios mío! How resilient ARE YOU??" Luz shouted. 

She wielded the staff again and twirled it before summoning more ice and vines. Unfortunately, the beast saw her tricks. The Tyto-Bear knocked Luz to the ground again before taking her in its claws. Luz found the egg knocked far away out of her hands and being dragged up to the sky by the monster. 

"Oh gods, Luz!" Amity cried in horror. The twins watched and called to her to escape. The others in the group (minus Gus) just stared up and held their breaths. 

"Hang on tight, Luz!!" Eda warned the girl. "The wind is getting extra blustery up where you're goin'!"

"Oh dear. This is too much to bear..." Julius moaned - he copied the young Gus and shielded his eyes. 

The young human thrashed about in the Tyto-Bear's iron grip. Its dark black claws dug through the fabric of her outfit and into her skin. She winced everytime the monster fidgeted her body about. The Tyto-Bear was looking for an area to drop her and, like a nut, crack her open. Luz hastily looked around and saw Owlbert and the staff nearest to her. Even though she was now dozens of yards up. 

"¡OWLBERT! ¡VEN!" she called out loudly to the wooden owl. Owlbert once again obeyed--this time in a different language--and reattached himself onto the staff before taking off in immense speed. Before the creature could react, the staff (back first) slammed hard into the Tyto-Bear's beak and knocked it backwards. That, in return, unhanded Luz who was thankfully caught by Owlbert in the nick of time. She sat up on the staff's center, glaring at the monster. Its face was bruised and blood spewed from its beak. 

"Alright, you giant bear-bird, if you really wanna kill me and take the artifact-" Luz swooped down on the staff and re-retrieved the artifact.

"You're gonna have to come and get me." The Tyto-Bear responded with a roar that sounded like it was saying 'bring it on' and flapped its wings towards her. 

Luz took off away from the beast and began to lead her and the Tyto-Bear around the arena. However, they ran out of places to hide or pin one another down. No amount of foliage in the arena slowed down the creature chasing the young human, and she was running out of room to hide or move about So, the time, she really HAD to bend the rules. Directing Owlbert into the sky, she zoomed off over the stands. She flew over a stand that held the teachers, the more prominent families in Bonesborough and the two other principals. 

"And in these exhilarating yet terrifying guns turn of events, Luz the Human is attempting to steer the free Tyto-Bear out of the arena in order to shake it off her trial!" 

"LUZ COME BACK!!" Amity screeched. 

"NO, LUZ!" The Blight twins and delinquent kids all screamed in harmony. 

"LUZ! GET BACK HERE! You're not supposed to do that!!" Eda called out - Luz, however, was too far away. 

The Tyto-Bear, still hot on her trail, grazed over the teacher's stand, its updraft so powerful that it blew their hair around. 

"Oh good heavens. That little one is gonna get killed!" The potions teacher fretted. 

"Is that even legal?" The abomination teacher pondered. 

"Child, turn around!!" The baby class teacher shouted. 

Out of all the people clamorous and panicking in the stands, there were only four exceptions. The Blight parents Alador and Odalia stared out with blank expressions while Boscha's mother smirked. And lastly, Reagan Diablo---perched at the top of the stands--looked out with a look of which was a mixture between curiosity and annoyance. 

It was hard for Luz to shake the massive, bewildering creature gaining on her from behind. Through massive forests, open valleys and clear boiling lakes they flew. Soon, they found themselves doing laps around the top towers of Hexside. The Owl Beast often perched its gigantic burly body onto the top of one tower before finding the right moment to pounce. It did a few of these but all failed. Luz--sidesaddled on the staff--wielded some more glyphs in order to distract the beast. The Tyto-Bear was, unsurprisingly, not having any of this; it often flicked away light spells or fire spells, or even shredded he paper before the magic even activated. Luz was running out of glyphs and fast. She was down to one of each spell, and she knew she couldn't just combine them all into one 'super spell'. 

She was flying over Bonesborough now. The beast had retired its wings for now and was instead running over the roofs of shops and houses. It was unbelievably fast, though the tiling was rough on its feet. Luz felt a gust of wind from how high up she was. And then she saw it.

Like in cartoons, a visible gust of wind flew past Luz's ear and disappeared into thin air. But not before the young girl saw a symbol flash for a split second before disappearing as well. 

It was a glyph. 

It appeared a lot like the light spell, but rather it had two straight lines pointing on one side to the left and another the right. The triangle had another line drawn right through it, and instead three dashes covering that. Luz, luckily, was a fast drawer, taking a paper and ink pen from her pocket. It was a good thing she found a price of paper not already preoccupied by a glyph or ripped apart by Boscha. 

She repeated her drawing process a few times before she had about ten or eleven of these "gust glyphs" as she playfully deemed them. Down below, the Tyto-Bear saw an opening to strike and did as it could. It spread open its wings and bared its fangs and claws while shooting up like a rocket. Luz didn't have time to react. She was in the middle of collecting the glyphs into one pile before she felt herself the staff get stolen from underneath her and launching her into the air. She was falling down to the town while the Tyto-Bear grasped aggressively at the staff in its beak. It also held tight to the artifact in its ursine claws. 

Luz had to get the staff and artifact back. Eda would probably kill her before the bird-bear got to her. And that artifact seemed to be pretty expensive judging by the marine rials it was made out of. Perhaps, now's the time to really see what this new glyph had in store. Luz decided to wield them as a sort of propeller through the air. She stuck two on her shoes quickly and the same to the palms of her hands. 

"Oh Titan, I hope this works..." She prayed to herself. 

She lightly tapped the soles of her shoes together and her thumbs to her palms. All four glyphs lit up with a light grey hue, and pretty soon, Luz found herself getting ejected up higher into the sky by these guys of wind. 

"It worked!" She chuckled proudly to herself. 

The young girl tapped them over and over again until she could see the Tyto-Bear circling around the area. The owl bear was seen beginning to gnaw and teeth at the actual Palisman. Owlbert was already covered in scars and claw marks, and Luz was getting angry. 

"Oh no you don't!!!" She reapplied two more gust glyphs to her palms, tapped them and soared towards the giant monster. 

"Taste foot, BEAST!" The Tyto-Bear looked up and saw the girl coming right at her, being propelled through the air. 

It roared at Luz but was once again knocked back with a very hard blow by the foot to the beak. She grabbed the artifact in her hands before pushing it under her right armpit. She began to fall once the glyphs wore off and quickly took the staff. Ice on, she tapped it lightly and began to fly once again. Luz leaned forward slightly to check up on Owlbert. He was severely beaten up, covered in small bite marks, claw marks, the whole nine yards. The tiny owl looked back at Luz with tired eyes and gave a weak coo to signal he was okay. 

"Oh, Owlbert," Luz whined, her heart broke. "We can't stay here. Come on! I'm sure you'll have enough energy to make it back to the Knee." 

The Latina bent backwards on the staff, she and staff included went the opposite way, back to the Knee. The Tyto-Bear regained its strength after clawing at its face and caused after her. It was growing tired and the injuries it sustained did not help it. Though it still was resilient and confident on tearing that little morsel of a girl apart. Luz looked behind her, seeing the beast was once more on her trail, and she growled. 

"Y'know what?" The Latina hissed. "I was just being very tolerable of you. But now, you are REALLY making me ANGRY!" 

In one hand, she held out two glyphs--one fire and the other a gust. She pointed the fire one right in front while the gust was in the back. She waited patiently for the beast to get in range, her fingers only nano-inches away from the paper. 

"Wanna know what a flamethrower is? If yes, then come closer and FIND OUT!!" The Tyto-Bear was soon in Luz's desired target range, opening its beak wide and revealing all its gory, bloodied teeth. 

"NOW EAT THIS, SUCKA!!!!" She tapped both glyphs at the same time. 

A long burst of fire shot out and was blown into the Tyto-Bear's face. Just like a flamethrower. The beast screened in pain and was propelled back. And as an added bonus, it was knocked out of the sky. Luz turned back around, pulled the artifact back into her arms and let out some very panicked yet triumphant laughter. 

"H-Ha...H-HahahahaAHAHAHA! I DID IT! I DID IT!!!" She pumped her arms in the air. "FINALLY THAT PAIN IN MY BUTT IS GONE!! WHOO HOO!! YES YES YES YES YE-" she paused for a second. Something wasn't right. 

"Hang on. Why are we...falling at an angle??" Luz looked down to see Owlbert fully knocked out and both he and Luz plummeting down towards the Knee.

"AGH! Oh no! O-Owlbert! Get up, little guy!" 

Luz lightly tapped the wooden owl's head and back - Owlbert did not budge. 

Luz was in for an emergency landing. 

Back at the coliseum, Eda utilized a levitation spell to go high above the stands to see if she can spit Luz. She 'walked' around but saw no living sign of a human on the staff. The group around and on the stands were restless and were fretting over what exactly was happening. It has been over 15 minutes, and no human nor monster have appeared. 

"Oh come on, kid," she fidgeted with her hands. "Where are you?" 

Below, Amity was panicking. And so were the others, of course. But honestly, Amity's panicking overshadowed the others by a long shot. 

"Sis. You gotta breathe. You HAVE to breathe." Emira pleaded, stroking her younger sister's hair. 

"Oh gods. Please don't die, Luz. I've just gotten to like you. Please Luz. Please." Amity was in a funk. She was constantly crying and praying or whatever else she was doing. Willow just stared at the poor Blight girl in sadness while Amity's siblings were hugging her fiercely. 

Viney, Jerbo, and Barcus were all helping the Owl Lady by going to the other stands and looking about. Julius and his son did the same, taking flight using their wings. 

"Any luck? Any of you?" Eda called to the lookout people. 

"NOPE!" Viney called. 

"Not a single thing." Jerbo called as well.

"Boof..." Barcus sadly woofed. 

"I do not see any living creatures flying out there, nor did my son," Julius reluctantly answered. "I am so sorry, Edalyn." 

Eda rubbed her temples and whined. "Oh gods, kid." The Owl Lady turned to glare angrily at the skull of the Titan looming over the land. 

"I swear to the gods, Titan, if my kid is dead because of one 'a YOUR dumb freaks of nature, I'm gonna-"

"Edalyn, threatening a dead island is not going to bring her back," Julius sighed, his ears drooping down. 

"I know...but, she's just...a kid..." Eda spoke in a soft demeanor, one Julius has never heard of in a long time. 

Gus was pacing back and forth at the top of the stands. He looked around in the sky and saw not a single living him. However, in the stance he noticed this weird speck from afar. The more he stared at that point, the bigger this speck grew. It was as if it was heading right towards the coliseum. Gus squinted his eyes and, to his pleased surprise, it looked would humanoid shaped with an added sliver of a line underneath. 

"Oh my gods! It's her!" Gus breathed out - he dashed over to Eda. "EDA! I FOUND HER! OVER THERE!" 

"What where?! Get outta the way, squirt!" Eda gasped, pushing aside the boy and saw that ever growing speck - she turned back to Gus. "Get your dad. NOW." 

The young illusionist obeyed and teleported to his father. The man, though surprised at first, listened carefully to what his son has said. 

"Ladies, gentlemen and non-binary folk in the stands. Please turn your attention to the far north-east side of coliseum. A meteor has been detected." 

All the spectators turned their heads in that direction. The speck has grown bigger and bigger. 

"That's no meteor!" Eda cried out. "THAT'S A LUZ!!"

Amity perked up from her siblings' hug and whipped her head around. The others (including Willow) did the same. Pretty soon, two fast objects flew overhead at such high speeds they looked like blurs. 

"LUZ!!" Amity shouted happily, tears rolling down her cheeks. 

"Too fast too fast too fast." Luz muttered to herself - they were gonna land right in the field of rock structures. "Owlbert, if you're...somehow...semi-conscious, I'm just gonna say this is gonna be a BUMPY landing." 

She braced for impact but even with bracing, Luz was catapulted off the staff and rolled around in the snow the moment they crashed down. Sounds in the audience were a collection of wincing, muttering and groaning. Eda and the others stared towards the seemingly lifeless body of Luz in the snow. Luz, however, was miraculously still awake. She coughed hoarsely and managed to get part of her body off the ground. 

"Mh. Coño...."the girl swore and groaned. The cartilage in her back popped as she slowly gathered herself. She looked around. Though her vision was a little blurry, it did clear up and saw she was back in the stone area of the arena. Owlbert was face first in the snow, the staff on the other hand was farther away. The artifact, thankfully, was also left unharmed. It was quiet. 

Luz saw Owlbert not moving and scrambled on all fours to him. 

"Owlbert...." She scooped up the poor thing into her hands. 

To her joy, the little bird did not sustain anymore damage and was awake again. He nuzzled in her fingers and gave another weak cooing sound. She let a relieved breath escape her mouth as she held the little bird to her chest. But then came a very loud noise from above. Something right above Luz was making these awful pained noises. Upon looking up to the sky, a giant body of mutilated fur and feathers came plummeting down like an actual meteor. Luz gasped and scrambled out the way before the thing finally landed where she once was. Snow around the figure was shot in like water and then crashed back down to the ground. Everything was silent again. 

Luz did not dare get back up from her position, guarding the artifact and Owlbert under her body. But once all calmed down, the Latina got up and turned around, sees what exactly landed. 

The Tyto-Bear laid in that shallow crater of ice and snow. It appeared in the position of a resting dog, but its body and face was covered in blood and burns. One wing was stretched out behind it, the other over its body. The beast's mouth was wide open, a puddle of blood came leaking out from its gums. Some teeth were knocked out and its long, blood-stained tongue stuck out as well. The beast was, thankfully, still alive, much to Luz's frustration towards it. However, the Tyto-Bear's breathing was shallow and faint. 

Wide-eyed, the young human girl stood to her feet, her body wobbling and shaking with tremors. More bones cracked in her arms and legs. She turned to the crowd and then back to the two objects in her arms. Owlbert was fast asleep and her artifact was intact. 

The crowd began to clap slowly. That turned into polite clapping, then to cheerful clapping, and soon, everyone was full on party-mode celebrating. People were cheering and hollering like crazed animals. Others were crying and shouting and chanting Luz's name. The teachers and richer witches were especially surprised. The abomination and history teacher clung to one another, laughing and cheering. Reagan's eyebrows rose in surprise. The Blight parents and Boscha's mom scowled but also appeared very surprised. Other students in the stands cheered and shouted the girl' name, thrashing in their seats. 

"And WHAT an ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR finale to this chaotic match of the year," Perry--taken aback--announced to the crowd. "It appears our once down-in-the-dumps champion Luz Noceda, has evaded death multiple times over and has at last slain the beast she once was scared to face! SUCH AN INSPIRING AND BAFFLING DISPLAY INDEED!" 

Eda--who originally was standing up--had her eyes flung open and mouth slacking; she slowly sat down back in her seat. 

"Holy. Fucking. Shit." 

Julius and Valentine were laughing out of shock and hugging each other very very close. 

"She's alive she's alive! Thank the gods she's alive!!! Ahahahahahahaha!" Amity was practically rocking back and forth in her seat, waving her arms around excitably. Her older siblings were cheering and clamoring like the rest of the crowd. Viney and her two friends cheered as well, joining in a big hug and singing a song about how "the human girl has vanquished a mighty evil of tooth and claw". 

Gus was running up and down the stands, yelling, "MY FRIEND LIVES AGAIN! TAKE THAT, GODS!" at the top of his lungs. Willow, down back in the stands, was smiling so widely. For Luz. For her friend surviving that terrible event. She no longer felt mad or upset towards Luz. She was beyond relived her friend was alive. A few rows away from the Owlets, Valentine's posse all watched in awe and disbelief. The mantis girl was rapidly clapping and smiling like she was friends with the human. However, Derek--the older lizard boy--looked at her with disdain and slapped her hands. 

Luz was shell-shocked. She peered at all of these people cheering for her! FOR HER. And NOT out of pity. When she pumped up her fist, the crowd just went ballistic. 

Suddenly, the poor girl felt light headed. She waved one more time to the crowd before her eyes rolled back and fainted, landing in the snow back-first. 

"Buenas noches..." Luz uttered out before she fully went unconscious. 

Perry yelped at the downed girl and snapped his fingers. Two healers and two beast wranglers came out from both sides of the booth. He ordered them to help both unconscious creatures in the arena. They got to work with no hesitation. 

🌟🌟🌟

Over two hours passed before Luz woke up again. She felt herself slip in and out of consciousness before she finally flickered her eyes open. The Latina was stripped of her winter uniform, and luckily she wasn't cold. She was placed in a healing tent outside of the coliseum, laying in a fluffy bed and in the heat of a freshly made fire. She noticed some healers entering and exiting the tent, however they never made an effort to check up on their now awake human patient. Luz was not in much pain, but her arms and legs were definitely sore. Her scar was too, but she was thankful if wasn't searing in absolute pain. 

Next to her she saw some familiar objects. The first thing she saw was little Owlbert sleeping peacefully atop the artifact. He was covered in tiny colorful bandaids. The artifact itself was not even touched at all. Luz's attention changed when she heard a voice yell from outside the tent and a figure rushing in. 

"LUZ! You're awake!!" It was Gus - he entered the tent with a running start and embraced his friend with much force. 

"Oof! H-Hey Gus." Luz chuckled, her voice hoarse from awaking. "Glad you're here." 

"Get outta my way!!" Another voice barked from outside. Into the tent a very exhausted yet worried Amity came in running and pushed Gus out of the way to also embrace Luz. 

"A-Amity!" Luz was shocked. "H-Hey. What's up?" 

"You idiot, you beautiful, talented, idiot," Amity muttered from Luz's shoulder. 

"Well, look on the bright side. I kept your promise, didn't I?" Luz's attempt at a joke made the Blight girl hug only tighter. 

"Amity.....Slow...Down." A third voice--Edric--panted from outside. 

"The gods above...." Emira also panted. "You...run...fast...Mittens." 

"We came as soon as I heard Gus yell your name," Viney--who was standing behind the Blight siblings--spoke calmly. "Eda was worried sick. And so was Blight number 3 here." 

"Really??" Luz beamed. "Awwwwwww Amity! You DO care about me~"

Amity felt her face light up more. "Ha! D-Don't be ridiculous! I only came here to...ch-check your pulse!" 

The human girl laughed at that. "Sure. You go 'check my pulse'." 

The entrance to the tent opened once more, and a very awestruck Eda came walking in, her eyes stretched all the way open. 

"Well. Damn. Done.," Eda spoke while also clapping after each word. "Wow. That was...sweet Titan. You...YOU KILLED IT OUT THERE!" 

"I know! I-I...I actually DID it!" Luz smiled widely. "Who knew a silly little human such as myself could actually win a battle against...whatever that thing was." 

"I can't believe I was actually SCARED for you," the Owl Lady stroked her hair. "But I ALWAYS knew you'd come out on top. Who cares about those other performances?? Yours was an EPIC SPECTACLE!!" 

"I...heh, I wouldn't call it an 'epic spectacle'," Luz tried to stay humble but failed. "Ah, what the heck?? It WAS an epic spectacle!! I ACTUALLY FOUGHT A THING WITH MY BARE HANDS!!"

"That's my girl!!" Eda cheered, ruffling the younger girl’s hair. "For your exemplary performance earlier, you earn a parallel arm thing...FREE of charge!!" 

Luz gasped dramatically. "Really? For free?? Well ain't that a deal!" She struggled up a little out of the bed and side-hugged her mentor - her mentor rubbed her hair again. 

A few moments later, Eda spoke up again. "Well, let's not get too caught up in the sentimental stuff. Let's see what's up with your new Doo-dad!" 

Luz released her mentor from the hug and grasped onto the artifact on the bedside table. Owlbert woke up immediately from the sudden movement. Whatever this artifact held information wise, the girl didn't care. It was a prize and definitely a well earned one, too. In the front, she turned the position of the golden sphere and noticed a small latch. It was like one of those found on a music box. Luz hesitantly grabbed hold of the latch and slowly opened it up. 

Nothing. No prize inside. Just a strange looking tube covered in tiny notes and not playing any tune or nothing. However, instead, Luz grimaced in pain at a high pitched screaming in her ears. It was coming from the artifact. The others in the group covered their ears as well upon hearing the screaming too. 

"SWEET TITAN! MAKE IT STOP!!" Emira yelled. 

"What kinda prize...is THIS??" Gus shouted, trying to drown out the horrid screaming. 

"KID! The LATCH! NOW!" Eda ordered, crashing on her knees. 

Luz did as she was told and struggled to get her hand to the latch. At last, she took ahold of the latch again and the screaming stopped once the lid was placed back down. Everyone let go of their ears and stared at one another. They were quiet for a few moments. 

"What....was that?" Edric uttered. 

"Some lousy prize, I tell ya," Eda said while rubbing her ears. "Well shoot. There goes my perfectly functioning eardrums. OW!" 

"Interesting," Amity examined the artifact. "Maybe it's a clue to the next challenge?"

"Who cares about that kinda stuff? I'm ready to PARTY!" Edric shouted - Emira shoved him firmly. 

"Wanting to party after almost getting our ears gorged out by screaming," Eda blinked; it was followed by a proud smile. "Now THAT'S my type of guy!" 

"Why don't we give Luz some time to rest before we go full celebration mode at the Owl House?" Gus suggested. 

"Yeah, good thinking, squirt," Eda responded. "Welp. We should probably get back on the road and to the house. I'm guessing Hooty is hankering for food. Owlbert, come!" 

Owlbert got up and flew over to Eda's shoulder, nuzzling into the owl lady's hair. The Owl Lady turned back to her apprentice. 

"Hey, kid. Thanks for not smashing him." The lady winked and began to leave the tent. "Rest that eye of yours, or else there’ll be no cake for you tonight."

"Wait, cake??" Luz gasped, sitting up more. "Tell me more-"

"LEAVING BYYYYYE!" Eda was already on the staff and flew off with Gus and Amity of the back. Edric and Emira utilized teleportation and the delinquent kids left on the back of Puddles the Griffin. 

Split second after all of the kids left, Luz noticed a figure walking by the entrance of the tent. However, they stopped in front and stared in. It was Willow. She didn't look angry or even sad; she just looked...guilty. The plant witch and the human stared at each other for a short while. Willow waved to Luz politely while Luz kept a stoic expression. It faltered, however, when the plant witch left the scene in silence. 

The human girl felt a sharp pain in her scarred eye and instinctively went to clutch it. Suddenly, another figure appeared by her side and offered her a pill. She took it with touch question and swallowed it; the pain was almost instantly vaporized. 

"Thank you-" Luz looked up. "Oh..Hi, Mr. Diablo." 

"Child, what you did today was beyond crazy, illegal AND dangerous all wrapped into one," the frog witch snarled - he twirled his finger around his arm. "Though, I don't know how ya did it. Survivin' on just paper magic and yer wits." 

"Yeah. So?" Luz said skeptically. "Why are you so curious?" 

"Eh, not really lookin' for anything really," Reagan shrugged and went off on his way. 

However he stopped in the middle of the tent's entrance to say one last thing: "I expect you to keep it up. Don't want anything bad happenin' to ya." 

Before he left, Luz spotted a quick glimpse of Reagan's non-bandaged eye glimmer a hazel color--unlike his natural blue. The witch huffed, twirled his finger again and go off on his way. 

How peculiar. 

Luz sat back down in her surprisingly comfy pillow and drifted off to sleep. 

🌟🌟🌟

The Owl House was bouncing and popping to the sounds of many celebrating individuals. After Luz recovered enough to make it home in her own, Eda welcomed her with open arms...and an extremely hungry demon. Gus, Amity, the twins, and two of the three delinquent kids arrived a few hours later to get the little celebration started. When Luz asked where Viney was, Barcus and Jerbo shrugged and explained she was 'busy with something important'. Luz didn't question it. 

After a pretty hearty round of appetizers and drinks, Luz decided she needed some air and went up to her room to watch the stars. Oh, how she noticed how enchanting the sky was when shifting from purple-red to dark navy blue. Luz was enchanted once again by the gorgeous collection of stars covering the sky like a bright blanket of light. But then someone had to ruin it. 

"HOOOT! HOOT OH HOOT!!!" A shrieking scream followed by the crash of a window echoed Luz's room. 

"AGH!" Luz fell off the rim of the window and onto the floor with a massive thud. "AY DIOS MÍO, HOOTY! Can you NOT give me heart attack everytime??" 

"HOOT HOOT! STRANGER DANGER! HOOT! STRANGER DANGER!!" The bird tube squawked. 

"Stranger danger?" Luz rolled her eyes and went to the window again. "Hooty, you need to ca-wait what?" 

Down at the entrance to the Owl House, two familiar girls stood there patiently yet confused. One was wearing dark brown-and-orange fur sweater with dark blue pants, black boots and a fish-hook choker. The other was in a yellow dress with striped pants and brown boots. 

"It's Viney.....and Willow?" Luz was curious, she had to admit. Maybe Viney forced her to come along for the sake of being nice. Or something completely different...?

"Those are my friends, Hooty! Let them in!" 

"I don't trust the one with the hazel eyes, Hoot!" Hooty argued. "She looks too.....off."

"Listen, big guy," Viney growled. "We were invited to this party and WE WILL be getting in. Plus, Ms. Park over here needs to speak with your human."

"Ooooh yeah??" Hooty spoke skeptically. "What's in it for meeeee? Hoot?" 

"Oh. I don't know..." Viney thought about it for a second. "I'll..uh, pet you...?"

"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm," the bird tube squinted at both girls for a minute before going back to his chipper self. "OKAY!" 

Swiftly, the long wooden owl stretched underneath Willow and Viney and launched them up to Luz's room. 

"Wait what are you dOOOOOOOING?!" Since the window was already broken open, both we left unharmed when they finally reached the room. Both were covered in feathers and extremely shaken. 

"Okay, I'm no longer coming here without you," Viney shook off the feathers. 

"Hey, guys! I didn't expect...both of you to be here." Luz spoke slowly. "Umm, what brings you here? More so...Willow."

"Jerbs and Barcus told ya I had some business, right?" Viney asked - Luz nodded. "Well, uh. TADA! Here's your business!!" She gestured to Willow who evaded the gaze of the Latina. 

"Willow?" Luz asked. "Is that true?"

The plant witch shrugged. The double-track witch groaned and pushed the shorter girl towards Luz. 

"I had a little bit of a talk back at the Knee before you competed," Viney explained. "And I just knew both parties were a little...beaten up, if you get what I mean." 

Luz blinked. "Wait, so, Willow AND I are gonna-"

"Uh-huh. You two stay in this room and APOLOGIZE to each other." 

"Wait a second!" Willow perked up. "You didn't say anything about this!" 

"Tough griffin toenails, plant girl," Viney snapped back. "And YOU, Luz. You may be the innocent one in this argument, but YOU have to say some things to Willow here." 

The two witches looked to Viney and then to themselves. The other witch smiled and made her way to the door. 

"Whenever Jerbo, Barcus and I were mad at each other, we'd stay in a room in silence until we apologized. It'll be easy for you. I promise." Viney turned back and continued to speak. 

"Now, listen up. I'm gonna get something t' drink, cuz I haven't drank anything since this morning. I trust you two to be at least a tad goodie-goodie by the end of th' night." She was opening the door, but then turned one more time to speak just a tad longer. 

"Oh, and if either one of you attempts to escape, Puddles is outside. She'll find out and drag you RIGHT back to the room, okay? Okay. Good. See ya later, cuties." Viney at last closed the door on her last words. "HEY EMIRA! GOT ANYTHING CRAZY I CAN SIP ON??" 

The girls were finally alone. Willow and Luz took glances at one another but did not fully keep eye contact. What was there to talk about? There was so much, what were they gonna talk about first?? It was beyond awkward for both girls but they had to come clean sometime. 

"So...listen-" Willow spoke but then stopped - she took a breath. "Luz I....I am-"

"I'm sorry," the girls said simultaneously. Willow gasped very lightly and looked at the human in confusion. 

"Luz. What-What are YOU apologizing for?" The plant witch gasped. 

"For....I don't know. A lot of stuff," Luz shrugged and sat down on her bed. "For being mean to you at the sleepover three nights ago. For yelling at you earlier today. For staying in the games in the first place. I really shoulda apologized to you earlier, but I was just....so hurt by you lying to m-"

"Luz. Could you just shut up and stop taking the blame for everything??" Willow snapped, causing the Latina to go painfully silent. 

"To be very honest, Luz, I...I should be the one apologizing. For the last half a week, I've been a horrible friend. I've ignored you...yelled at you...and just have been flat out terrible towards you. I'm so sorry for placing all the blame on you and doing nothing to break our bond...."

"Willow," Luz scooted towards her. "Why don't you...sit down?" 

Willow nodded after some time of hesitation and sat down, crossing her legs. 

"Even though what you did to me was wrong, I'm not totally innocent. I've been not the best friend either. I'm sorry for yelling at you and all that stuff. It's just...I was so mad. Everyone hating me....pointing fingers. And the. You lying to me-" Willow cringed from that. "-I was so angry....I just wanted all of it to stop."

"You didn't deserve any of this," Willow spoke quietly. 

"I know, but I guess getting attacked by that Tyto-Bear was kind bad karma, y'know?" Luz chuckled.

"NO! No it wasn't! You didn't deserve this! NONE of this!" The plant witch rose up along with the increased tone of her voice. "Not getting your name picked! Not almost getting killed! And not even the harsh teasing from literally EVERYONE in the school. UGH! Why wasn't I there?? Why couldn't I just be smarter and just-..Just LISTEN to you?!"

"Willow, stop! You're being too hard on yourself!" Luz tried to get Willow's hands away from beating her head. 

"That doesn't excuse from now I've treated you!" Willow yelled back, her voice sounded like she was close to tears. "All because I thought you've repeated your mistakes from the Grudgby Match! I was so DENSE and downright terrible to the point I just pushed you away!! I was so scared...That I'd lose you for real....I-"

"Willow. That's not true." Luz squeaked. 

The tears began to fall and fog up Willow's glasses. "And I just went and called you a 'dumbass'. Sweet Titan, this is just the situation with Amity all those years ago...Oh, Viney was right...UGH! I DO know NOTHING about you! I just went and FUCKED EVERYTHING UP!" The plant witch began to cry. 

"No no no, Willow, enough of this," the Latina scowled but began tearing up as well. "Y-You were just scared a-and...and clouded with anger. That's TOTALLY reasonable. A-and....Y-you're right. You treated me horribly. B-but....I should at least share th-the blame. I wasn't nice. I didn't even make any effort of fighting back. Hell, I was just a coward...I-I am so sorry."

"Gods, Luz. I'm so sorry. I'm so so SO sorry," while Willow apologized over and over again, Luz wrapped her arms around the poor weeping girl. The Latina began to cry as well. 

"This-i-is so s-stupid! Ignoring each other for stuff we either didn't do...o-or w-were allowed t-to be like..." The human cried, burrowing her head on Willow's shoulder. "I...I shoulda talked."

"A-And I...I should've talked t-to you earlier..."Willow admitted, her voice shaking. "I do-don't wanna lose you! A-All I have is you, Gus a-and Amity. And I JUST got A-Amity back...I-I can't trade her f-for you!"

"Willow, don't be silly," Luz gasped - she cupped both of Willow's cheeks in her hands. "Y-you're never gonna lose me. I've already said this...but you had ALL the right to be mad at me. Y-you having emotions will not drive me away. I-I would've been mad, too, to be honest." The Latina wiped some tears away. 

"A-And trust me. You w-wouldn't stick around l-long enough to see me angry." 

Both girls were silent and then broke out in distressed laughing, more tears falling down their eyes. Willow and Luz stayed in the hug for a very very long time, shedding fresh tears and sniffing away their sobs. Willow had eventually rested her head on Luz's chest and they stood there in silence. That was until a small chuckle from Luz broke it. 

"Oh hermano," Luz said through the tears. "W-What's up with people and crying all the time? This is SO cliché....I feel as if I've cried, like, seven times this week alone." 

"I can relate," Willow slipped out of the hug and wiped away the fog from her glasses. "L-Let's make a pact." 

"I'm listening," Luz inquired. 

"L-Let's not l-let anger or jealousy...o-or fear cloud our judgement ever again. A-And I'll talk to you more about my stuff. D-Don't wanna repeat the whole Amity incident." 

"Agreed," the human nodded. "And I won't just b-back out of things....OR apologize for something I-I didn't do." 

"Deal," Willow said, relieved. 

The two were finally back together and shared another hug. And then came a smaller wave of tears in both their eyes. 

"Oh gods we are so cheesy...." The plant witch chuckled. 

Luz laughed. "Couldn't agree with you more..."

The door slammed open, and the tiny demon King ran in with a frantic expression on his face. Both witches quickly got up to their feet out of shock from the noise. 

"LUZ! That Amity girl is making dinner downstairs!! She wanted me to find you and-" King stopped, noticing the dark red circles around both girls' eyes. "Uh, is everything...okay in here?" 

Luz and Willow looked to each other. The plant witch smiled and in return, so did the Latina.

"Yeah. Everything's all good," Luz confessed. "Just tell Amity both Willow and I will be down in a second." 

King gave the two witches a thumbs--gaining a cute reaction from Luz--and booked it put of the room and back down the stairs. Both girls decided it was their time to leave the room. Luz took Willow by the hand and both left the room. 

"I should ask Viney to do friendship therapy more often," Luz said. 

Willow laughed. "You do that. You do you." 

Downstairs, all the children were gathered around at a singular old, rickety table awaiting for an assortment of tasty foods to be served. Amity was excited to see Luz again but then her demeanor changed when she saw Willow with her. Amity was so angry. 

However, the young Blight lightened up when she noticed that both girls had red markings under their eyes. Amity politely asked by they both looked liked they were crying. Luz just plainly said Willow and her had an extremely important talk upstairs. Amity didn't push it any further. 

At the table, the Blight twins both took turns complimenting the vicarious human champion and offered her some joke candies as a token of celebration. Luz happily obliged. On the other side of the table, Willow sat next to Viney who playfully elbowed her. The delinquent kids were a little confused as to why their 'leader' looked so proud but the food came out at the same time. And they didn't wanna dwell on it too much with empty stomachs. An assortment of meats, veggies, huge loaves of bread and a giant tub of soup were served. Eda sat up and tapped a spoon to a wine cup. 

"To Luz. The best Damn champion I've ever met! May she have more successes in the days to come!" 

Everyone clinked cups happily together and gorged themselves with food. After dishes were dirtied and food all used up, the other witches reluctantly had to depart. Luz took her time with each other her friends and gave warm hugs to them. Amity and Willow were the most enthusiastic about it. At last, all the dishes were magically cleaned and placed away, the Latina undressed and got ready for bed. 

Today was just one crazy near-death experience made a reality, and Luz loved it. Not only did she succeed in not getting maimed by some strange hybrid beast, but she gained back her best friend Willow. She felt so good and her confidence soared. 

Luz slept well later that night. 

🌟🌟🌟

Far away from the Owl House, in a dark and secluded room, a figure sat down and wrote a paper. The pen tapped to each word and at last, the paper was completed. The figure took one last look at the paper, breathed out a tiny laugh, and sent it away. 

"I do hope the Emperor's Coven tolerates water," the figure spoke. 

They left the table and blew out the candle. The moon and stars shimmered instead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween my readers!! 
> 
> I hope I'm not too late to the party with my fanfic. I hope you all once again enjoy my little story!! I am suffering through both the Amphibia and The Owl House hiatuses and only have fanfictions to soothe my angst-starved mind. 
> 
> ANYWAYS, I hope I survive the hiatuses. They're gonna be long ones, folks. 
> 
> (Though to be fair, Steven Universe had it worse-)
> 
> Edit: Apparently, the gang had dinner twice XD changed it from “hearty dinner of meats and stews” to “appetizers and drinks”


	8. The Montage and The Mansion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tw: A very brief mention of suicide, swearing, quick depiction of death, and....Eda makes a sex joke, I guess

Hexside seemed very different after the First Trial. The students still went on their merry ways, conversing with each other, performing magic, and the likes of that. But for Luz, something was different. Sure, Val's buddies and Boscha still tease the Latina and say she was "just lucky", the demeanors of the other students have gone through a complete 180. 

It was lunchtime. Luz was sitting with her group of friends, chowing down on some skewers of meat and mushroom. It was very nice to once again sit with all her friends and not be alone. Willow and Gus talked happily about the events of yesterday and Amity was strangely nowhere to be found. Then, the human girl heard some muttering behind her. She turned around and saw two of Boscha's friends Bo and Skara whispering indescribable words. Upon noticing that they were being watched, the girls turned to Luz and smiled at her. Bo winked and waved politely - Luz waved back. The two girls giggled and blushed at the human before wandering off. Luz was very confused, that's for sure. 

However, that wasn't the only weird thing. 

All around the cafeteria, Luz noticed many a witch were paired up into tiny groups of 2 or 3. Some witches flirted with their presumed boyfriends, girlfriends or any another partner. The Latina recognized Edric standing really really close to Valentine and attempting some small talk with him. But from the way he was blushing, Ed was not doing just AVERAGE small talk. Valentine smile and laughed several times. Meanwhile, Gilda was gaining a small following of many suitors dying to gain her attention. She has her eyes on one of Valentine's buddies, however. Loki, who was sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, had a group of athletic girls fawning over him. The man paid no mind, however, and was more interested in eating the sandwich made for him. 

The romance was EVERYWHERE. It was so present that it rivaled the love in the air during Grom! Nothing made sense today, and it really drove Luz nuts. So, she decided to turn to her friends and ask. 

"Hey, Willow? Gus? What's-"

"UNBELIEVABLE!" A sudden voice yelled from across the table - Luz reacted with a flinch and a jump. 

Amity was fuming. Her face glowed a dark red and in her hand gripped a small paper wrapped in a neat form. Though made of paper, the intensity of it being slammed onto the table made it sound like it was made of stone. Willow and Gus caught wind of this and turned to the very upset girl. 

"What's wrong, Amity?" Gus asked. 

"This." Amity slid the paper over to Gus who quickly took it in his hands. Luz was curious and slid over. All three witches gasped. 

"Hold up. Is that-" Willow had to readjust her glasses. 

"Amity AND Luz??" Gus gasped. 

"'Youngest Blight sibling Hooks Up With Human Fourth Champion during Harrowing First Trial--Just Pals, or Perhaps Even More than Tha-' WAIT A SECOND!!! That's not true!" Luz squawked. 

"Ugh, the whole Bonesborough News Department is going BALLISTIC about some stupid girl from a high class family presumably 'falling in love' with a HUMAN," the teal-haired girl groaned and rested her head in her hands. "It's HUMILIATING." 

"Hey hey hey, it's gonna be alright, Amity," Luz comforted her friend. "No one's gonna believe the press. I'm just some silly human hugging a witch. No one's gonna suspect a thing!" 

"That's not why it's humiliating..." Amity muttered to herself. 

A couple seconds later, another familiar friend entered the table, Amity's sister. She didn't look all too happy, judging by her scowl. 

"Ugh, rough night," Emira grumbled rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Thought, to be fair, seeing Ed having feelings for that bat really makes it all worth it." 

All the witches looked behind them; Edric and Valentine both looked to be having a ton of fun, the bat holding onto the Blight's shoulder as he laughed. Val's friends looked like they begged to differ. 

"It's strange, really," Luz spoke up - she was distracted by a pair of Bard Track students walking by and sharing a passionate kiss. "Do you guys have, like, a second Grom or..."

"Second Grom?" Willow blinked; she took time to observe the stuff going on around her. "Oooooooooh. Wow. This is...heh, embarrassing." 

"During the games, the three trials have a 'middle celebration' during the transitioning of one trial to the next," Amity explained. "This particular one...that's ALSO why I was a little nervous about us being in the paper..."

"Wait a second," Gus realized. "I sure hope you're not saying-"

"Oh, she's saying it, Magician Boy," Emira snickered. 

"What? What's she saying?" Luz asked uncertainly. 

"Please, Emira. You better not be talking about the-"

🌟🌟🌟

"-THE WITCHING MOON BALL." 

After each lunch period, the group of Hexside students and some faculty were ushered into the auditorium for an important briefing with St. Epiderm's principal, Heavenalia Dagger. The students were organized into a massive circle, all collectively paying attention to Principal Dagger in the very center. 

"I knew it..." Gus groaned and crossed his arms. 

"The Witching Moon Ball is an ancient tradition in the Boiling Isles Championship Games for as long as music has existed," Ms. Dagger began her lecture. "It is time of romance, dancing and down time from the last trial. It is a pleasant time for many a student to learn new dances and converse with once another. This year is no exception!" 

With a twirl of her finger, an old-fashioned phonograph materialized in front of the older witch. She twirled her finger again and a charming little ditty began to play. 

"Now," Heavenalia added. "One doesn't just simply go to the dance without....er, well, DANCING of course! So today, while your professors are busy, I shall be teaching you all how to pair up and dance! Let us begin shall we?"

Heavenalia circled her finger a third time, causing a more spunky sounding song to play on the phonograph. The students around her began to tense up and feel more and more awkward about what's to come. 

"Let us begin with some basics," the old witch held out her arms wide. "Now, which one of you troublesome teenagers is going to suck up their pride and join this old lady on the dance floor?" 

All the students were silent, but preferred to speak among themselves. This was the last thing they wanted to do today. The Hexside quartet and the Blight twins seemed to have the same opinions about the dancing. 

"Yeah I don't think so," Gus grimaced. "It'll be a cold day in Hornswaggle Valley when I am forced to dance with a woman scarier than my dad." 

"Augustus," Willow whispered to the boy, her voice sounding in between amusement and shame. 

Heavenalia swirled her head over in Gus's direction. "Poking fun at the more unfortunate looking today, aren't we, Mr. Porter?"

From behind the you illusionist, Emira and Edric were struggling to contain their laughter - Luz seemed to be doing the same. Gus gulped in a big breath. 

"Since you are so inclined of being courageous, why not demonstrate your bravery by participating in my dance lesson?" The old witch held out a hand and did a partial curtsy. "I am waiting." 

"Oh, why did I have to shut off my logical brain and make a joke??" Gus groaned to himself - he slowly moved his way through the crowd of students. 

The Blight twins and Luz were all saying "oooooooh" as the poor boy went towards Heavenalia. Meanwhile, Amity and Willow just liked very disappointed though also somewhat amused. Finally the young boy was face-to-face with the old principal who towered over him. She gave him a stern smirk but changed it to look more unimposing. 

"Now, do as I say," Heavenalia began. "First, get a proper hold of your partner, grasp hold tight to my hips and back." 

Gus did as he was told and grabbed onto her sides. The poor witch wanted to pass out then and there. The snickering amongst the crowd did t help his case, either. 

"Very nice! very nice!" The witch complimented. "The next step is to step backward and forward while I do the opposite. Like this!" 

The music continued to play as Heavenalia initiated the dance. She stepped forward as Gus instinctively stepped backwards as to not get his toes crushed by her thorny heels. The students around him watched, laughing quietly to each other and peaking sick jokes to one another. Edric held out his scroll phone and began taping a video. 

"You're not gonna live this down, aren'tcha?" Amity smirked. 

"Oh Titan no." Edric snickered and continued to record the video. 

After a few minutes, Gus had the right amount of (though awkward) energy to take over the dance and began to guide the older witch around in circles. Heavanalia seemed very impressed by the progression of this one boy. 

"Well well well, your father taught you well, child," the witch smiled - she turned to the students and hatched a devious idea. 

"Considering all these other folk are just sitting around watching a child and I dance away, why not all of you join us?" 

The students ceased their laughter and shifted around awkwardly. Edric paused and shut off his scroll phone, but the footage still there. Emira had her hands over her face and the other Hexside kids all looked to each other blushing. 

"Oh come now! Don't be such antisocial little demons! I suggest you partner up with someone in this room and join in the lesson! Remember, not only do you need to dance your bile sacs out, but you must find yourself a date. Now don't be shy - come down!"

The students all remained in their spots just shifting and twitching in pure embarrassment. Some of them felt like they wanted to shrivel into tiny balls. One student commanded an invisibility spell on the scales and vanished. However, across from where Luz and her friends were, the tallest of the delinquent kiddos, Jerbo, stood up with a stoic look on her face. Viney and Barcus gasped and tried to coax him back. 

"Jerbs, no! Don't be a fool!" Viney shouted for her friend. 

Jerbo approached the older woman and offered his hand to her's. 

"Would you like to dance, Ms. Dagger??" The boy's voice was blunt and crackly, but did show some courage. The two danced while Gus watched on the sidelines. 

"Oh gods, this is the hardest thing to watch," Willow groaned, her cheeks blushing. 

"Well then." Luz tapped her seat - she put on a fake smile and turned to all her friends. "HEY! You know what would distract us from all this pretty tense stuff?? ANOTHER MONTAGE!!!"

"Well, I suppose anything is better than watching a teenage witch dance with someone four times his age," Willow agreed. 

"What's a montage?" Edric and Emira asked simultaneously. 

"DON'T QUESTION THE MONTAGE JUST LET THE MONTAGE HAPPEN!" Luz swiftly answered. 

And now, let's officially commence the montage!!

All the students in the group did eventually join together and pick their partners and attempt horribly at dancing. However, Amity and Luz seemed to be the most skillful among their friend group. Amity was paired up with a random male student for this dance but did steal glances over to Luz, who was with Willow just for conveniency. However, an orange bird-like witch really wanted to dance with Willow instead being stuck with Mattholomule of all witches. And of course, unsurprisingly, Viney and Emira were together. Though after some time observing it, Amity found it peculiar how the two girls acted around each other as they danced. And by the gods, did they dance WELL. 

The last two-and-a-half days were definitely something to say the least. One time, when Luz and Amity were leaving the courtyard, they noticed a familiar bat witch practicing his balance and coordination. Unfortunately, every time Valentine attempted a new dance move, he always would slip over his own feet and tumble to the floor. His wings flew over his body like a blanket each time. 

"Oh, bastard son of Dallica," Val groaned to himself - Amity couldn't help but laugh. 

When Valentine got back up, he spotted both girls leaving the courtyard, acting as if they weren't just silently making good fun of him. The bat brushed his suit off to clear any mid or dirt and started up once again. He butted against a tree that time. 

Valentine was not the only witch trying to try to brush up on their dancing skills. The Delinquent kids came over to the Owl House one night for some serious ball courtship talk. When all the kids were talking, Jerbo was in the other side of Luz's room, ballroom dancing with himself. He was surprisingly graceful despite his usual clumsy teenager-like manner. He twirled and spun himself around while Luz, Viney and Barcus all watched with expression of confused fascination. 

"Never thought my dear friend Jerbo would be such a dance king," Viney chuckled. 

"Woof!" Barcus barked in agreement and began laughing....at least that's what it sounded like. 

Luz did think about what Viney said about finding the perfect partner during their time, however. The next day, the Latina confronted Gus and both wandered around both town and Hexside to find their perfect dancing partners. It was snowing that morning, so everyone was adored in cold-weather clothing. 

"I may be getting respect after my performance, but how are they gonna get pass my, er, 'Luz-iness' and take me seriously?" Luz confided with the younger witch. 

"Don't know," Gus shrugged. "What I DO know is that there are a TON of girls your age over there!!" 

Gus pointed his finger out to a cluster of female Glandis High students staying together like a herd of girls. Luz start heating up. Maybe she'll land a silly little dance partner just by showing herself; there were a lot of people who respected her after the first trial, so perhaps one of these girls would love to come with her. The Latina and Gus approached the group but immediately were met with a sea of judgmental eyes on them. One girl had this shitty sneer on her as she scanned her eyes at both Luz and Gus. The latter, on the other had, were caught in their tracks. 

"H-Hola..." Luz awkwardly greeted the girls, waving her hand vigorously. 

"Heeeeeeeeey, ladies," Gus attempt to be smooth but failed pretty easily. "M-My friend and I were just...w-walking by." 

The girls scoffed collectively and left the two very embarrassed and frazzled students behind. The two duo mustered enough willpower over their stunned brains to speed-walk away from the situation as fast as possible. 

"Oh my stars I thought we were gonna die." Gus moaned and covered his face. 

"It's worse on Earth, trust me..." Luz joked but fell flat. The two walked around a while before making a full circle back to the Hexside Campus. There were a couple of St. Epiderm boys hanging out outside the courtyard. 

"Let's try boys instead," the Latina said, and the young illusionist nodded. 

They didn't do any better than last time. 

Luz and Gus eventually retired during a free study period to join Willow and some of Boscha's friends oustide near a lake. This time, Luz managed to bring that strange egg artifact with her in order to study it a bit. One of Boscha's friends--Cat, offered to look at it since she explained that her grandma taught her a lot about music boxes. Unfortunately, to her surprise, the young witch did not recognize this particular box. She shook her head and apologized, though Luz was quick to understand. The Latina kept the box hugged to her chest. 

The gang was not alone by the lake, however, as they heard the many sounds of swooning women from over yonder. Apparently, Loki was out by the lake's extensive beach, practicing his magic and working out his muscles. And behind him, a swarm of female upper class men from all three schools tagged behind him. When he performed a lunge or a simple construction spell, they all oohed and ahhed and swooned some more. Loki seemed to not notice however; he had himself completely focused on his workout. The Hexside group seems to notice this.

"Ugh, of course it's the muscle-strong HIMBO that gets all the women," Luz exclaimed out of frustration. "Ay Dios mío, it's the biggest cliché in the book..." 

"Couldn't agree with ya more," Gus answered. "........What's a 'Himbo'?" 

Out of all the kids, Willow seemed to be the most transfixed on what was happening. Her eyes were glued on Loki and the carefree mannerisms he displayed as he lunged on that beach. Luz caught wind of this and looked over to give her paint friend a very mischievous look. Willow somehow felt her friend's glare on her and immediately turned her gaze away from the handsome indictable strutting on the beach. Willow scowled at Luz who turned away and snickered alongside Gus. The swooning in the distance continued. 

🌟🌟🌟

Lunch came around, and all the kids were gathered at one table to talk about their courtship attempts. And on Luz's extent, information about the artifact. The Latina slapped her face onto the table top and groaned longingly. Willow and Gus sat aside the Blight Twins and Amity. Amity looked different out of the siblings, however. Her hair appeared longer despite still being tied back. 

"You okay down there, Luz?" Amity asked concernedly. 

"Nuh-uh....." Luz groaned - she rose her head from the table. "I didn't find any information retaining to the artifact NOR did I have any luck getting a date for the ball..."

"We tried compliments, assertive confrontations. Luz even made the suggestion of trying to give someone an exotic gift-" 

As if on cue, another Hexside student ran out in the hallway, flailing around while some ravenous little plant creatures tore at their hair. All the inhabitants of the lunch table looked at the little scene, turned back to each other and shuddered. 

"-I really should study up more on what plants are living and what plants are LIVING," Luz joked before sulking back down on the table top. 

Emira huffed. "Gifts never really worked for us Blights. You gotta be blunt or at least make a SHOW of it! That way, anyone you meet see how SPECTACULAR you are as a person and will fall madly in love with you!" 

The older Blight turned her body around and spotted her target: Viney was sitting with some of Boscha's former friends chatting away. 

"Watch and learn, cutie~" Luz immediately perked back up and rose her head to watch the demonstration. 

Emira twirled her finger under the table, and a tiny sphere floated over to Viney. The dual track witch grabbed ahold of the orb which magically transforming into a tiny neon-blue message saying 'Look in front of you'. 

Viney did as told and had her eyes meet with Emira's. Emira proceeded to do some strange movements with her body, one motion Luz guessed was related to dancing. All the while, Emira was mouthing the words, 'Will you go out with me?' Viney, finding this amusing, began to lightly chuckle and nodded. 

'Well yeah. Of course, ya dummy,' the witch mouthed back, getting a blushing Emira in return. The older Blight turned back with a prideful look on her face and seeing both Luz and Gus stare at her with surprise, mouths gaping. 

"W-Wow!" Gus exclaimed. 

"How did you-" Luz stuttered but was unable to finish. 

"I don't know. I guess I'm just good at playing hook-up," Emira threw her hands up and then behind her neck. 

"It's because Em here is da-" Edric tried to speak but his mouth was quickly covered by his twin sister's hand. All the others looked at Edric and Emira with confusion. 

A minute or so later, Amity felt a slight tap from a claw on her shoulder, followed by a polite ahem. She turned around and came face-to-face with Valentine himself. She jumped back a bit. Edric, also seeing him, felt his cheeks heat up and slipped into his hood. 

"Hello, Amity," Valentine greeted the girl. 

"Uh, H-hello, Valentine," Amity cleared her throat. "What seems to be...the problem?" 

"I want to speak with you for a bit, if you don't kind," Valentine answered. "It's just...something important. Business if you will." 

"Umm...okay, sure," Amity shrugged and rose from her seat. "You two better not do anything stupid while I'm gone!" 

"Oh, Mittens, don't be silly," Emira purred. "We were gonna do it anyways~" 

"Y-Yep totally..." Edric agreed, his face still hidden under his hood. 

Amity glared at her two older siblings one last time before exiting into the hallway with Valentine. When their sister was out of hearing range, Emira leaned over the table to Luz. 

"You wanna know some of my hook-up tricks?" Emira whispered to the Latina - Luz gasped. 

"Uh, YEAH! I would absolutely love that thank you!" Luz whispered back excitably. 

The older Blight chuckled. "You gotta play hard to get. Everyone I know around in school is a SUCKER for bad boys facades. Even AMITY would die for you! Act all rough, and they'll come crawling to ya!" 

Luz hummed with disagreement. "I don't know...being a bad boy sounds AWESOME, but I'm not convinced everyone in all three schools has a liking for them. " The Latina tapped her fingers on the table before realizing something. 

"OH! I should get some wisdom from Eda! She's had TONS of dates over the years! Maybe she knows what to do!" 

"Eh. I guess the Owl Lady does have more experience with dating men and probably women," Emira--a little disappointed--answered. "Be my guest."

Luz swiftly gorged down what she had left for lunch and ran out of the cafeteria, waving to her friends. 

🌟🌟🌟

Coincidentally, there was a Palisman messenger tower nearby the school. It's odd that Luz had never noticed it before but she is very lucky it is there. Why she went to it is very explainable. And it's not only because she's still in school and can't leave campus whatsoever. Earlier that morning, Eda informed Luz that she was going to another town to get some supplies for...undetermined reasons. Despite not being able to see Luz in person until tomorrow, the owl lady would still be able to send messages. Luz had already sent out a letter to the owl lady a half an hour ago and was waiting patiently for it to return. 

While waiting at the top of the stairs, Luz reflected on the day. She was disappointed in the lack of knowledge towards the box and everyone in the school--including some teachers--did not know anything about it. Other than being a music box, of course. On the other hand, the Latina was frustrated with getting a date. And the advice about hooking up was very peculiar yet useful, but didn't really match who SHE was. Though Luz did promise herself to use the 'bad-boy' stuff for later use. She went through her head of people she could ask to the dance. 

"Maybe I could go with Skara-nah, she's dating that Ivan guy..." Luz pondered to herself. "Oh! What about that Simon kid! He's a cool unicorn-cyclops du-no no, he's with Clarence. Then there's that Batwin girl. She's cute, but not....single. AGH WHY IS THIS SO HARD???" The Latina lightly knocked her head against the wall. 

Why did getting a silly dancing partner have to be so complicated? 

A second later, she heard the familiar coos of an owl Palisman. Outside the window, a tiny bandaged up owl swoop down and landed in front of Luz on a tiny table. He did not look happy. Luz grabbed the little orb that originally was in Owlbert's claws and activated it via a light tap. Eda's face appeared. 

"Hey kiddo. I'm out right now but you already knew that," the Owl Lady spoke with her regular snark. "So, you're having trouble with picking a date, huh? Well, I am not a committed woman, but I do know the right person for the ball will always be the person that is in front of you the whole. Happened to me three times in one year for Grom, actually. That was one crazy foursome." 

Eda stopped talking for a second to snort. "But I kid. I'll be seeing ya tomorrow to drop ya off. Oh, one more thing-" 

Owlbert swiftly nipped the human's fingers, getting a tiny hiss from Luz.

"Ow! O-Owlbert!" 

"Owlbert is extra grumpy today," Eda added on a little too late. "He bites. Keep all toes and fingers away from him when in this mood. 'Kay, see ya early tomorrow, kiddo!" 

The orb finished its little message and fizzled away. Luz had a lot more to think now. 

"The one right in front of you?" The Latina asked herself. "What does she mean by-"

But before Luz could continue on in her ramble, she heard the clicking of boots downstairs. She rushed down the multiple flights to see who was there. Walking by in the hallway was Amity. 

"Oh course!" Luz came to a conclusion. "Amity! She never got a partner for Grom, so this time, I'm be her OFFICIAL fearless champion!" 

The Latina began to rush closer to the girl, all excited and confident to ask her out. However, when Luz got closer, she notice the young green-haired witch had a stone cold look. Like as if she saw a murder. Luz slowed down and instead took a more comforting approach. Amity, however, saw her before she could say a thing and flinched back. 

"Oh! Hi Luz," the witch spoke in a tired voice. 

"H-Howdy, Amity," Luz said, finger gunning the girl. "Er-I mean-" 

the Latina decided to be more 'bad boy' like just like Emira said - she leaned against a wall. 

Luz changed her expression to a neutral one. "What's up? What brings ya around here?" 

"I'm just....walking," Amity shrugged, a little confused by Luz's display. 

"Interesting....hey, Amity," Luz began slowly. "I was pondering about something....and I was wondering if...-" Luz stumbled with her words, fondling with her fingers. Amity raised an eyebrow. 

"Would you like to go to the dance with me as my partner??" the Latina finally confessed outloud, taking Amity aback. 

The Blight girl smiled but it quickly faltered as she stared down on the floor. She sighed and turned back to Luz. 

"Valentine asked me out."

Luz gasped. "Excuse me?"

"Valentine already asked me out to the dance. That's why he brought me out into the hall during lunch."

Luz was dumbfounded. "Valentine? Ummm, isn't he a little too old to have the hots for you?" 

"Wh-What?!" Amity sputtered. "Ew! No no no, i-it's not that. It's just-...business reasons." 

"Oh. You wanna...talk about it?" Luz spoke softly.

"My parents heard about Valentine returning to our friend group and decided to pair me up with him for....status reinforcement," the green-haired witch confessed - she struggled to keep her books close to her body. "I-....don't really wanna talk more about it." 

"Oh, okay!" Luz happily answered. "So, whatcha gonna wear?? Something pretty, right?"

Amity chuckled. "Yes, Luz. Something pretty."

"I recommend you have a long flowing dress with sparkles that represent stars! Lots of people back on Earth do that for Prom! It's super cool, and I'm sure you'll look amazing." 

"O-Oh, s-sure!" Amity answered, blushing. "I'll tell my....mother. Thanks for the recommendation. What about you?" 

"Oh wow, I haven't thought of that," Luz pondered, running her fingers through her hair. "Well, I guess a little walk with you would be a nice kick for my brain!" 

"Of course, you dork," Amity giggled. 

The two girls began to walk down the hallway, conversing s out the dance and outfit ideas for Luz. The Latina once dripped the idea of officially dressing as an otter, but the young Blight was quick to dismiss it - they laughed about it. It was going to be an important day tomorrow, so Luz understood she should be serious about it. But as they walked down the hall, a couple of familiar witches from Valentine's posse watched them leave. One of them deviously smiled. 

🌟🌟🌟

The Owl House as a surprisingly quiet place the next day, the day of the Witching Moon Ball. Despite only being the afternoon, the moon hovering high in the sky had a sickly green hue to it, an outer halo encircled the natural satellite as it shined. Luz and Gus were together at the Owl House talking about being partnerless and have not a clue of what to wear. At one point, Gus exited the room and picked up something from outside. 

"Oh! They're here!" Gus exclaimed suddenly - Luz looked up for, her rummaging of the clothing chest. 

"What do you mean 'they're here'?" The human asked - Gus turned around and held a large bag of what looked to be clothing inside. 

"My suit for the dance tonight," the illusionist happily announced. "My dad said my great-aunt Sylvia had lend these to me! I don't know what they look like, but I'm sure they will look awesome!" 

Luz smiled. "That IS awesome! But what's keeping you from getting a peek in? Take a look!" 

"You're right, let's do this!" Gus began to carefully yet firmly tear at the bag. "Prepare yourself, my human friend Luz, for you may become too shocked to speak about how-" 

Once Gus got a good visual of what his outfit would be, Gus paused and his face dropped. Luz, still anticipating the grand reveal, paused as well. 

"Handsome....my suit....is...." Gus trailed off as be stared at his outfit. 

It was a light blue with a white ruffled inside that stuck out like a sore thumb. The cufflinks were an ugly bronze and the pants that came with them were battled up and a black color. The suit looked as if they were made out of both fur. The only think that looked decent were the pair of dress shoes that were wrapped up in a piece of cloth at the bottom of the bag. 

"Sweet Titan. What IS this?" Gus gasped. 

"Oh my goodness!!" Luz exclaimed, then began to laugh loudly. The illusionist groaned so loudly. 

"Oh, seriously, dad," Gus complained. "This outfit looks as if my great-aunt didn't just wear it at one point, she literally was born in this." 

Luz just kept continuing to laugh loudly. She tried to speak to her friend but her words just dissolved in hysterical giggles. 

"Oh-my-God....." Luz wheezed. "I-If only Willow w-was-was here...-" 

The door swung open as Luz was recovering from her laughing fit. King and Eda both burst in suddenly with very surprised looks - both kids twirled their heads around at the duo entering unannounced. 

"Hey, Eda!" Luz happily said to her mentor. "How are you-"

"Kid. You gotta see this." Eda said plain and simple - she held out a small, partially crinkled up letter over to the Latina. Luz looked at it. 

Slowly she tore the note open using one of her long finger nails and took out the letter. Luz didn't have to read it all the way before she gasped quite loudly. 

"What's that?" Gus came over to investigate. 

"Whoa whoa whoa," the Owl Lady halted the boy - she pointed to the suit. "WHAT is that thing? Please don't tell me that's one of your parent's outfits." 

Gus gasped, clearly embarrassed. "NO! Of course it's no-" 

"You two, shush! Look at this!!" Luz quieted both of them, and the two bickering individuals hovered the Latina as she read the letter out loud. 

"To whom who receives this letter, you and a guest are cordially invited to Stars Manor for a pre-Witching Moon Ball tour and preparations. Courtesy of Julius-Jackson Stars and his son, Hexside Champion Valentine Stars. Be at the mansion in about thirty minutes, or else this invitation will expire." 

"Whoa! An invitation to Stars Manor??! I want in!" Gus begged his human friend. 

"This letter's giving me old love-life memories," Eda shuddered. "I used to go over to Julius' manor multiple times after school." 

"It says the invitation is gonna expire in thirty minutes," King acknowledged. "Shouldn't we get going now or-"

"OH SWEET DALLICA'S RAM HORNS YOU'RE RIGHT," Eda realized - she gripped onto Luz and Gus' wrists and pulled them down the stairs. 

"E-Eda! Too fast!!" Luz yelped as she felt her legs being dragged behind her. 

"Come on, you slowpokes! We gotta get there or the letter will be worth shit!" The Owl Lady chucked both kids onto the staff, mounting on it herself and off they went. 

🌟🌟🌟

The ride over to the Stars Manor would not be too long, so it gave the three enough time to talk about this presumed home of Valentine. 

"So, after you quit school, you STILL went to Mr. Stars' Manor??" Luz exclaimed. 

"Like I said before, I DID often go over there for little magic practicing sessions, cute dinner dates, the usual," Eda gagged at the word 'cute'. "Hell, whenever I got grounded, I'd sneak over there to play Hexes-Hold 'em with Jules and his siblings." 

"Lucky..." Gus reminisced with a twinge of jealousy. 

"Sounds like you and Julius had a lot of fun as kids," Luz said. "What happened to you, too?"

Eda shrugged. "When I got cursed and dropped outta school, we kinda just....drifted apart, to put it tamely." 

"See? I told you not ALL relationships end horribly," the Latina scolded her mentor. 

"Well, still doesn't make me wanna confront old flames," Eda argued back. The Owl Lady looked ahead, and from bewilderment, she stopped the staff slowly. 

"Hey hold on," Gus looked around. "Why did we stop moving?"

"Well, kiddos," Eda slowly spoke. "We're here." 

Both Gus and Luz directed their gazes to where Eda stared off to and saw before them a mighty house. A mansion to be exact.

The mansion casted a mighty shadow over a small patch of forest over the cliff it was constructed on. The Stars Manor had a three-walled front with giant towers and was littered in giant stained glass windows. In the back was a massive circular building attached to the mansion, a tall brick archway led to a small courtyard on the side. There was a very lovely yet imposing front entrance to the mansion, and upon a closer look, in front was a decently sized lake and multiple trees surrounding the area. There is an obvious star theme to the mansion, hence the star shapes carved on the towers, the spikes on each fence, and even the weather vane. Oh, it put the Blight Mansion to shame, really. 

The gang lowered down to the gates and paused right at the gate door for someone to usher them in. Eda took a good long look at the landscaping of the property. 

"Huh, Beating Birches," she whistled. "Risky choice. Weren't here the last time I visited." 

"Hello??" Luz called thorough the gate's bars. "Someone out there? We got invitations!" 

The gate suddenly opened as if Luz's voice was some sort of password to enter. The three entered onto a gravely path surrounded by tiny berry bushes of many colors. 

"It's so pretty....." Luz swooned. "Awww, and the little bushes are a nice touch!" 

"I wouldn't touch those if I were you," Eda warned. "Engelberries. Will burn you if touched, but make one helluva jam." 

The Latina stepped back. "Good to know!" 

The trio continued on the path. As they walked past the brick archway, the human took a peek and noticed a beautiful ash grey tree with haunting magenta leaves glistening in the afternoon rays. What an interesting tree, not like the Beating Birches or Pagan Oaks that are commonly found around the Boiling Isles. It was enchanting yet somehow depressing to look at. Luz shook her head when her pal Gus called her name and caught up with him. 

At last, they stood in front of the door to the mansion. Eda stretched out her arms and yawned.

"Alrighty, kiddos," Eda spoke. "This is as far as I go. Make sure you two don't bring this place t' life while I'm gone. I'll he here around seven o'clock tonight before the dance begins." 

"Thanks, Eda," both kids replied happily. 

"Smell ya later, you little troublemakers," the Owl Lady hopped aboard her staff and flew back to the Owl House. 

"HOPE YOU AND KING FIND SOMETHING NICE TO WEAR!!" Luz called out to her mentor as she waved - Eda managed to do a thumbs up before completely disappearing over the blankets of trees. 

The two witches turned to look at the velvet-purple door in front of them, standing many feet over them like an intimidating figure. 

Luz looked at the door and then to Gus. She lightly knocked the door. 

No response. 

"So....do we knock again and wait or-"

"I'M COMING!!" A loud, muffled voice called from inside the house. 

A few sounds of shuffling and tussling around what seemed like clothing after, a somewhat neatly dressed Valentine opened the door, dusting himself off. He was in a dark violet robe with a black belt and purple boots. His hair was tangled and had a few bruises on his face, but other than that, he seemed like his old 'playboy' self. 

"Sweet Titan, it's you!" Gus cheered. 

"Hello, Valentine," Luz enthusiastically greeted the bat, smiling. 

"Ah good good, you two are here," Val smiled back. "Why not come inside? The Beating Bushes...have quite the temper." 

"MAKE WAY!" Gus happily took the invitation to come inside with full enthusiasm and zoomed off. "I'M GONNA GO TOUCH EVERYTHING!!!" 

"Try not to break anything, Mister Porter!" Valentine fretted as the illusionist dashed away up the stairs. 

"Haha, look at that little guy go," Luz laughed to herself. "Don't worry about a thing, Valentine! Gus and I have been on countless harrowing adventures, and not once has he bro-¡MADRE MÍA!!" 

Entering the mansion, the Latina was met by a grand hall of many rooms, endlessly winding hallways and one majestic staircase leading in two directions. The floors were carpeted with velvet red carpets imprinted with bat symbols and the wallpaper was an ivory white with a dark-purple swirl pattern. Pictures in glistening golden frames lined the walls in an orderly yet cluttered display. And of course, for the cherry on top, countless lavender-colored wax candles were suspended in midair by auras of magic. Magic was everywhere, and Luz was struggling to process it all. 

"¡Tan grande! ¡Tan hermosa!" She breathed out in awe, flapping her hands around excitably. "Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh! Your home is AMAZING, Valentine!!" 

Valentine shyly laughed. "I am...happy you enjoy my home this much. Now, I should show you where you and Augustus will be staying 'til tonight." 

"Okie dokie," Luz cheerfully responded. "I sure hope wherever we end up will be ten times as amazing!!" 

"Follow me." 

the duo began up the stairs and over into the right most hall on the second floor. More fancy doors and pictures lined the hallway, grabbing Luz's attention each time. However, there were three pictures that caught her attention the most. 

The first was a more graphic, horrid depiction of the Bat Queen herself. Her wings spanned out in a defensive position as she screeched at whatever was in front of her. Her children were no where in the picture, however, but it still looked epic to peer at. The second picture was of a younger Valentine alongside his father. They both had matching sweaters and appeared like they were celebrating some sort of winter Boiling Isles holiday. They looked so happy. But no mother, which was odd. 

And just as if Luz's wonders were magically solved, the last picture she gazed upon was a rather dog-like bat lady with light tan fur. Her blue eyes bore into the Latina's brown ones with a look that was both gorgeous yet frightening. She also wore a strapless royal purple dress with a gold necklace and matching earrings. 

This had to be Valentine's mother, Luz noted to herself. But where was she? Luz had to know somehow. She continued down the hall. 

More and more rooms appeared in her view as she slowly walked beside Valentine. She couldn't stand hoe quiet both she and the bat were. It didn't help that Gus was probably already halfway down the house by now. So, why not strike up a conversation? Luz had a very serious one in mind, to be exact. 

"Soooooooo...." The Latina spoke. "You and Amity being forced together, huh? What's that all about??"

Valentine gave a nervous sigh. "Yes, that. If you did not know this...Odalia and Alador Blight found out that I exist in her friend group again. And because my family is pretty high up in the Bonesborough Caste system, we were....'chosen' to be partners. Like I said before, 'business reasons'." 

Luz hummed in response. "But, hang on. Your papa's a huge figure, isn't he? What did he have to say in the matter?" 

"He didn't, unfortunately," the bat answered - Luz cocked her head. "The Blights are absolutely more prestigious in status, and my father was left overwhelmed. He didn't even hesitate when The Blights said me dancing with someone FOUR YEARS YOUNGER than me was okay."

"Well, now that's what I call a 'floormat' if I've never heard one," Luz huffed. 

Valentine blinked. "Luz, my father is a bat." 

"It's a human expression, don't worry about it," Luz answered back, laughing awkwardly. "But seriously. Sorry that you got forced into this big misunderstanding." 

"I appreciate the sentiment, Luz, but that doesn't take away my guilt," Val sighed. "I mean, I am truly sorry for taking your girlfriend as my dance partner." 

Luz stopped. She couldn't tell whether the bat boy was joking or not. She blushed a little bit. 

"GIRLFRIEND? Y-you saw the report??" The Latina yelped. "Oh no! Amity's gonna be SO mad!!" 

"Hey hey hey, I was just merely joking," Val chuckled. "I am sorry if what I said will upset Amity." 

"Oh my god you are too nice," Luz said under her breath before clearing it. "I mean...yeah. Okay. Thanks for letting me know. Though to be honest, I'm not offended by calling her my 'girlfriend'. She IS my friend who is a GIRL." 

"Ah I see," Valentine smirked and then faced ahead. 

The two walked in silence, the hallway still going down and longer and deeper. Luz had another conversation idea. 

"Hey, what's up with those friends of yours?" Luz pointed out. Val looked over. 

"Whatever do you mean?" One of the bat's ears flicked. 

"Like, they are just horrible people. They bully other witches, cause damage, they're chaotic. You saw what they did to me and perhaps maybe ever others! Why do you still stand by them and claim you need to 'be a guide' to them??" 

After that little rant, Valentine visibly looked uncomfortable from the Latina's question. He grimaced and turned his head away. 

"That is...business related stuff..." He said hesitantly. 

"Business? Is EVERYTHING business to you?" Luz interjected; she was not taking that as an answer. 

"I have a lot of business stuff," Valentine tried to defend himself. "I just...I feel responsible of keeping them in check. And they are not ALL bad, mind you. They are just....brutal." 

"Uh-huh," Luz squinted at her host - that truth sounded just as hollow as the hallway they strode through. 

"Look, I-" Valentine gave another sigh. "We should be at my room any moment now. Pardon me if I sound rude, but could we not talk more about this? It is a little bit of a sensitive topic of mine...." 

Luz felt a tad bad letting this go on for as long as it did, the boy clearly looked uncomfortable about it. So, she shrugged, followed by a simile "okay" and remained silent the rest of the way. 

Afte another minute had passed, the two stood I front of a small door, Valentine opening via magic. He stepped aside to show off the supposed resting place he, the Latina and Gus will be staying in. 

"This is where we will be staying: my room," Valentine announced. 

"What the heck, Valentine??" Luz gasped. 

The bedroom was large, especially larger than any room in the Owl House. Dark purple and white wallpaper lined the walls, tiny shelves held books and papers, and a miniature chandelier hung above. In the farthest part, a desk was covered in papers and books regarding the history of illusionary magic or something like that. In front of the desk a giant window overlooked the side courtyard with such a breathtaking view. Valentine's bed was propped to the right with a massive mattress, gold covers and a veil hanging down from an upper rim. Could this house get even better? 

"Oh my gosh," Luz squeaked. "So much to unpack here. Okay. OKAY. You can do this, Luz! Go and....Ah, what the heck?? I'm gonna rummage through your books!" The Latina ran over to the other side of the room to do just that. 

"Be my guest..." Valentine allowed rather hesitantly. 

Luz noticed a wide range of educational books and romance & fictional novels. There were many different titles she didn't recognize. "The Society of The Wyvern Queen", "The Complete Tales of Geneva the Beast-Wrangler", "Heavy a Heart is in Rain". They were all intriguing but alien to the hyper Latina. But then, her eyes fell upon one shelf holding four Good Witch Azura books. 

"You read Good Witch Azura??!" She beamed. 

"I skim," Valentine grinned, switching his robe for his iconic suit. 

"That is SO COOL!!" Luz looked out the window while questing happily and felt her gaze stare down at that tree. It waved in the wind. What a strange enigma it was - Luz was very curious about its existence, so she decided to pop a question. 

"I couldn't help but notice all those pictures of your mom and family out in the halls," the human continued to chat as she looked out the window. "Does your mom live here? Or is she currently at work?"

"Oh. My mother..." Valentine sighed and stood beside Luz and stared out the window. Both kids looked upon that depressing tree down in the courtyard. 

"The tree down there, does it have-" Luz blinked and then thought of something. "Wait a second." Valentine nodded sadly. 

"She died when I was very young," Valentine explained solemnly. "A fire destroyed our home. Mom didn't make it and was burned alive." 

"Oh..." Luz fell silent. What a terrible fate for someone who didn't deserve it. "I'm...Wow. That's terrible. Well, at least your mom's a gorgeous tree." 

"Indeed." The stared some more - Valentine looked over to Luz and flashed a tiny sad smile. 

"While Augustus is getting dressed, would like to see something...cool?" 

"Yeah!" Luz laughed. 

Valentine leapt down from the window sill and whistled. From outside the room, a white blur rushed in and was immediately stopped in its tracks by the bat's tough grip. Luz looked at the strange object in Val's hand that actually turned out to be a snowy-white staff with purple swirls. It came complete with a snowy owl Palisman with two dark brown demon horns. 

"Oh my goodness...is that YOUR staff??" The girl marveled. 

"Indeed it is." Valentine whistled again and the frankly large Palisman unscrewed itself off and leaped onto his shoulder. 

"My staff was created a few months ago from the bark of an ancient tree on the Titan's wrist. And infused with some Beating Birch bark, as well."

The owl Palisman used her witch's arm as a tiny bridge and crawled over to Luz, chirping at her. 

"Awwwww hello there, you cute little bird." Luz cooed. The owl nuzzled Luz's hands as she petted it. 

"Petra has always been a little cuddle beast," Valentine chuckled. 

The bird kept nuzzling the Latina's face with her own. "I can tell!" 

"It was a gift for when I finally graduate from Hexside and join the Illusionist Coven. This is one of the greatest gifts I've ever received. I'm not sure what I'd do if I lost Petra, or the staff...or myself." 

"Bah! You're a tough dude, and Petra's seems like a good independent little bird," Luz encouraged him as Petra left her hands and flew around the room. "Besides, if you ever did 'lose yourself'-" 

"I...suppose I could give it someone else," Valentine answered. "But who would be so worthy to have--...on second thought, I should not think too much on my demise." 

"Agreed." Luz patted Valentine on his shoulder, getting a bit of a flinch from him. 

"Uh, hey you two," a voice spoke from behind them, and the two witches looked behind them. 

Gus finally came out of the closet and was fully decked out in that practically disgusting looking suit. He did not look comfortable in the slightest, and that was pretty obvious by not just how tight the suit looked. 

"How...do I look?" Gus laughed awkwardly. 

Valentine and Luz looked up-and-down the suit and then to each other, cringing. Gus did not appreciate the tense silence and judging stares. 

"Well?" The boy pressed on. "Do I look okay or-"

"'Okay'? No." Luz blatantly said. "Downright abysmal and a painful eye sore to look at? Then that's were I unfortunately say y-" 

"Yes. You look absolutely nightmarish," Valentine blurted out. "If not more terrifying than anything in this demonic world." 

"Gee, thank you two for being so kind," the illusionist answered sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "And thank you SO MUCH for the suit, great-aunt Sylvia..."

"Oh, chin up, Augustus," the bat sighed. "Consider it an act of love for wearing a relative's outfit." 

Luz hummed and then interrupted with an enthusiastic 'Oh'. 

"Speaking of outfits, do you have any place where you keep fancy dresses or suits, or both?? I haven't been able to find a decent uniform for the ball!" 

"Hm? Oh yes, my family has a massive closet filled to the brim with clothing," Valentine explained. "What were you thinking of for a uniform?" 

"Well, dresses are super pretty and cool," Luz pondered. "But suits are cool, too. I even wore a suit with tutu for Grom. Do you...suppose we can do that? OH! And I would love some cute earrings!"

Valentine hummed in thoughtfulness. "I suppose we could all get dressed now. What do you say, Gus? I know you're already dressed up, but are you interested in joining us?"

Gus looked behind him, seeing that massive mirror attached to the closet's door. She stared annoyingly at his outfit in the reflection then turned around. 

"Now that you mention it, I would love to go to a place that doesn't have mirrors taller than me," Gus sighed. 

"Then you'll like where we're going," Valentine snickered. "Come along, you two!"

"YAY! CLOSET ADVENTURES!!" Luz shouted with glee. 

"That sounded...awfully provocative, Luz," Valentine responded, laughing a little louder than before. 

Luz paused. "YEAH IT KINDA DID!" 

All three children walked down the halls once more, Gus and Luz hoping that the closet on the other side of the house or super far away. But from how Valentine slowly stored down the hall, it didn't seem like they had to walk too long. And right on cue, they stood in front of a much larger, two door entrance. However, before Luz could enter the room along her two friends, she heard a voice from across the hall. 

"What do I owe the pleasure of speaking with you, Miss Lilith?" The voice spoke calmly - the Latina paused at the name. She looked over and saw another door that was slightly cracked open. 

Luz didn't have to move anywhere due to the voice being loud and clear, and the figure speaking appeared awfully familiar. It was Valentine's dad speaking to a tiny white raven. 

"Yes, I am well aware of the human," he spoke with a twinge of frustration. "YES, I am also aware she was the main target from the terrorist attack..."

Luz gasped. Wait WHAT??? 

"But doesn't it sound strange that a teen would know who to send to the palace to spy on Belos? Besides, you explained earlier that Dimitri committed suicide and Greggan was killed before reaching the building. That sounds rather...strange, don't you think?" The Raven opened its mouth several times, clearly showing that it was Lilith's turn to speak. 

Luz pondered more and slinked closer to the door. The conversation went on. 

"Yes," Julius repeated several times in the duration of the conversation. "What? A meeting you say? To discuss the human and what Belos' plans are to be this further on?" 

The Latina bit her tongue. 

Did...Did Mister Stars work for the Emperor's Coven? Did he know that terrorist attack last week would happen? Or did he somehow get information from an outside source? Has he been planning her demise this entire time?? What seems like a billion questions and theories swirled in the poor teen's brain. It hurt. Her scar began to flare up a little bit, as well. 

"I am terribly sorry, Miss Lilith, but I refuse to join in a meeting based around harming a CHILD," Julius growled. "I have-..." The bat stared out the window and at that tree. 

"I have my own...occupations to take care of. So, do not expect me to join this meeting or any others until you and that group of abusive council members of your's change their behaviors!!" Julius stared off after his mini-outburst and looked at a small picture of him and his family. 

"Luz?" Luz yelped at the sound and turned around to see Valentine - he was holding both a nice suit and a sparkly dress draped over his shoulder. 

"Wh-Whoa!" Luz breathed shakily. "You...You move pretty quietly for one with wings! Also, are those for me??"

The bat nodded. "Why yes. I was hoping you could try them on and then afterwards, Augustus and I could help with hair and jewelry." 

"Oh my gosh, Valentine," Luz squealed. "You are so so sweet!! Those mean boys don't deserve you at all!"

Valentine nervously chuckled. "Heh. Well, sure. You say what you want..."

Luz and Valentine walked into the massive changing room together and helped each other prepare for the ball. It was very nice for Luz to have someone to talk to when her family and friends weren't in the picture--despite Gus being there. Dare she say Valentine was like a brother to her. Despite the limited conversations they've had. 

However, as time went on and the Latina was starting to get more presentable, her mind couldn't shake that conversation between Lilith and Julius. Luz wondered if that bat man was hiding something. If he was, she'll keep an eye on him. But for now, Luz laughed alongside Gus and enjoyed slicking her hair back and preparing for what was to be one of the most chaotically exciting moments of her time in the games. 

Or so she thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, folks! No action this chapter, only character interactions. I think I have a serious description problem....
> 
> Well anyways!! I hope ya'll like this new installment! School has been a tad hectic and my mental mental could be better. But I'm surviving!
> 
> Also, I've been neglecting to write this the last...seven times, but Constructive Critisicm is ALWAYS welcome (just be kind and courteous)
> 
> Have a good day, my friends! ❤️
> 
> Edit: OH MY GOD! 100 KUDOS!!!! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! YOU ALL ARE SO SWEET AND KIND! 💕💕💕💕💕


	9. The Witching Moon Ball

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tag Warning(s): Swearing, blood, violence, teenagers being creepy towards others, Alcohol & Alcohol Use, mentions of Abuse (kinda)
> 
> Reader Discretion is advised! 
> 
> Also, DO NOT SHIP AMITY OR LUZ WITH VALENTINE. THERE IS A HUGE AGE GAP. But you already knew that...

🌟🌟🌟

Stars Manor was abuzz with many party goers. The moon shined overhead we that monstrous green glow and created a lengthy shadow over the mansion. Everyone from students of the three rivaling schools to teachers and parents has already entered the massive circular building. The hall of the great dance hall was covered in web-like decorations, levitating lit candles, and gigantic snow clouds made from an illusionist's spell that lightly dusted snow all around the dance floor. There as an abundance of romance in the air as many of the students and even teachers had their own dates tonight. However, the most important part of the Witching Moon Ball was arguably the music. The Stars family paid no expense when getting some of the best musical artists in the Isles. The music genres vastly varied from person to person, band to band. Heck, some instruments were magically brought to life to play the more ambient music as guests waited for the event to begin. 

Entering the mighty ballroom was Luz and Gus, and from the other side of the hallway was their chaperone Eda. Gus remained his downright ugly hand-me-down suit while Eda wore a special golden suit of some sort with her trusty red cloak and some moon-shaped earrings. To be honest, the Owl Lady could pull of a gaudy outfit better than anyone else can, let alone Gus. And as for Luz, she repeated what she did last year. Only this time, while wearing both types of outfits, it was much more based around a theme. 

The Latina wore a gorgeous blue ankle-length dress covered in sparkling stars at the bottom rim. Over the dress, she donned one of Valentine's pitch black suits with a violet trim and a puffy dark blue ascot. Her feet were swaddled by blue slip-ons that sparkled as she stepped, and matching sapphire earnings in the shape of diamonds. Around her waist she slipped on a big bag that held her egg-shaped music box from the first trial. And to top it all off, Luz's hair was slicked back just like in Grom, but some special magical gels allowed it to look more shiny and smooth. The one thing that stood out about her, however, was that deep scar etched across her right eye. 

Upon seeing her student walk in, Eda had to whistle in amazement. Sure, Luz was beautiful during Grom. But somehow, this look make Luz look powerful, cute, and stunning at the same time. 

"Damn kid," Eda marveled. "I think I've been too hard on Jules and his spawn. Valentine did an exemplary job spiffing you up and oh my goodness! You're so beautiful!" 

"I can vouch, you look spectacular," Gus cheered. 

"Color me impressed, human champion," King--wearing an adorably tiny vest and bow tie--agreed with the others. 

The Latina felt her cheeks burn up and her heartbeat quicken. 

"Awwwwwww, you three are such flatterers," Luz squeaked, flapping her hand to display her affection. 

People around in the ballroom seemed to agree with the trip, staring at their human champion in awe and talking about her amongst each other. Though she approached the sentiment, Luz was truthfully bummed about Amity. She would've loved to dance with her and comfort her and tell her she would stay alive for the games. And yet, her parents had other plans for her. Great.

Joining the quartet of well-dressed folk--that's debatable for Gus--a well-dressed bat in a white suit with a golden tie and curled hair came walking in. In one hand he was holding what seemed to be a beverage and on his face a grateful look. 

"Hello, Miss Clawthorne," Valentine warmly greeted the Owl Lady. "I'm so glad you came as a chaperone once again. The party wouldn't be the same without your presence." 

"Oh, please," Eda scoffed. "Don't be so formal around me, squirt. I'm just an old bird woman livin' in the woods." The older witch felt a swift jab from Luz's elbow and decided to correct herself. 

"Though, I shouldn't be so harsh towards you. Your talent of dress up DID make a huge impression on Luz here. Nice work, boy."

"Oh, why thank you," the bat nervously said, scratching his ears. "And Luz, you look wonderful." 

"I should say the same to you, Val," Luz exclaimed. "Look at you! You look like some host for a lavished party or something!!" 

"I mean, I am by extension a party planner of sorts-" 

"Valentine!" A voice called--Julius was the result of the noise. He rushed over and hugged his son. 

"F-Father!" Valentine was caught very off guard but was not annoyed. 

"Oh, don't you look so handsome in one of my old suits," Julius laughed heartily. "You really are just a small branch from the mighty tree, aren't you?" 

The old man's voice hitched like he was about to cry but he looked so happy and giddy for his son. Julius planted a plethora of kisses on his son's forehead while Valentine laughed from his father's embarrassing act of pubic affection. Eda had to snort a bit while King rolled his eyes, Gus kinda just watched and Luz stared warily at the older bat. 

"Oh, I forgot to mention," Julius cleared his throat. "Some familiar guests of yours have arrived." 

Julius folded his wings away to reveal three familiar folk. One was Willow, dressed up so beautifully in a sleeveless, leaf green dress with a heart-shaped top and white gloves and shoes. Her hair was tied back in a large bun and she wore a shiny gold necklace with a rose pendent on the end. Upon meeting eyes with her friends, the plant witch smiled widely. Luz and Gus did the same. 

"Willow! Oh my stars look at you!!" Luz squealed as she ran over and hugged the living daylights out of Willow. "You're so pretty! I love your hair and that necklace is so fancy!! Whoever dressed you up pulled no punches!" 

"I barely know what that term means, but thank you," Willow giggled. "My dad was always an expert toolsmith AND clothing weaver." The plant witch looked at Gus's outfit and hummed. 

"Gus. Are you sure you should go dancing with THAT on?" Luz and Valentine snickered in the background. 

Gus's face turned red. "Now see here, Miss Park-"

Before Gus could defend himself, he sensed the other two figures approaching the growing friend group. Edric and Emira had arrived after Willow, decked out in matching ocean blue attire. Edric had a fancy vest with a pine green bow tie and brown pants and shoes. His sister had a thin-strapped dress with sparkling green heels, a silver necklace and a light blue fur boa wrapped around her shoulders. They also saw Luz and the others and decided to talk it up. 

"Hey, cuties~" Edric and Emira said in unison. 

"There you two are!" Luz cheered. 

"Wow. You guys look-" Emira spoke but she trailed off upon gazing at Gus's outfit - she had no words. "-uh....Lovely...?" 

"Oh come on!" Gus retaliated. "Is there at least one witch in this place that ISN'T gonna judge how I look?!" 

"Nope, sorry." Eda laughed. The others joined in the playful banter against Gus. 

Just as things couldn't get more chaotic, everyone in the group heard a witch repeat the words 'hold on stop' over and over again outside. Luz looked over to the entrance of the ballroom to investigate, only to be forced away. Puddles the griffin, in a playful frenzy, came crashing into the main hall and skidding across the squeaky clean floors. On his back was a panicking Viney and a smaller unrecognizable guest cling onto her. 

"PUDDLES CALM DOWN!" Viney shouted. She twirled a finger and almost instantly, the Griffin slowed down and skidded to a stop before she could do any worse damage. 

"Good girl..." Viney hopped off Puddles and carried down the younger guest. 

The witch was wearing a tan strapless dress with a 'spiky' top, a darker brown jacket, brown boots, and a gold fishhook necklace and thorn earrings. When Emira laid eyes on her, the older Blight's cheeks grew into a bright shade of red. Luz rushed over and gave Viney a quick hug. 

"Looking great, Viney," Luz chirped - she noticed Puddles had a bow tie and flower clip on. "And Puddles is looking cute, too!!"

"Sorry for almost trashin' the place," Viney apologized, dusting herself off. "Puddles gets extra giddy when we go to dances. She just loves dancin' around like she's the main attraction." 

"It is no problem," Valentine swatted his hand. Puddles ran off into some unknown place in the Stars Manor. 

Viney gazed over and met eyes with Emira, smiling widely. Luz wasn't sure why, but she sensed that there was some...romantic tension in the air. 

"And good evening, Em," the dual-track witch purred - she strode over to the older Blight. 

"Good evening to you too, love," Emira chuckled. 

Love? Wait, hang on a secon-

But just as anyone could open their mouths of question the word 'my love', Viney and Emira were just an inch away from each other, the former wrapping her arms around the latter, and the two girls lightly pecked their lips together. Everyone, including Valentine and the adults, were very surprised. 

"Wait! You two are dating?!" Willow gasped. 

"This...would be actually a surprise," Emira began. "But...Vinester and I have been dating since Grom." 

"I KNEW IT!" Luz suddenly blurted out. 

"Knew what-huh?" Willow and Viney said simultaneously. 

"The blushing, the staring, your whole proposal to Viney, Emira! All signs of an established relationship! I had a massive feeling you'd be together and I was right! It was SO OBVIOUS!" 

On the sidelines, Willow gave Luz a look as if she had just told an offensive joke. Viney and Emira looked at each other and laughed. 

"Well, I guess we shoulda told you all sooner," Viney chuckled. 

"Hey. Good for you regardless, Vine girl," Eda winked. 

Viney suddenly felt a slight tug at her dress. A young boy witch with his face obscured by long bangs and wearing a cute brown vest looked up at the older witch. 

"Aw farts, forgot about you, little cutie," Viney laughed, picking up the little guy. 

Luz squeaked and raced over to see the little thing in Viney's arms. 

"¡Qué dulce niño!" The Latina exclaimed. "Viney, who is this tiny potato of cuteness??"

"This here is my little brother Twig," the dual-track witch chirped. 

"Hi," Twig quietly said. 

"My folks were out and most of my other siblings were busy, so I decided to bring 'im along to the dance. Ain't he a little handsome guy?" Viney planted a big kiss on the little witch's cheek, the latter giving his sister a smack across the nose. 

"Sis stooooooop," Twig laughed, still smacking his sister's face. Then the little boy saw Luz and gasped. 

"You look very pretty." 

"Awwwwww, and you are quite the handsome little guy," Luz laughed. 

"God, how many cute things have I seen these past few months?" Eda snorted. 

While more guests began to arrive in droves, the group decided to speak with each other. They had a multitude of things to speak about. Date plans, harrowing adventures to partake in, new spells, the usual. Eda told some more lore of the Boiling Isles. Legends about how before the Witching Moon, the weather would go crazy. Legends about how the sickly green aura encasing the natural satellite actually boosts the average witch's magic ten fold. It was impressive and very fascinating to Luz. One time, Twig handed over a flower to Emira. 

Twig stated that, "I'm glad you're making my sister happy!" 

Emira ended up crying waterfalls into her girlfriend's shoulder from the sheer mount of serotonin that little boy gave her. Viney sighed and patted her other half's back as she wept happily. 

An hour had passed, and the students from each of the three schools have arrived, along with their teachers. The group just kept going on and on with their separate conversations. Just as things were already crazy as is, Gus turned to a flight of stairs across from them and lit up at what he saw. He tugged over at Willow, to which she did the same. 

"She's beautiful," Gus uttered - it was loud enough for Luz to hear. 

"Yeah. This place sure is pretty." Luz spoke, staring at the architecture. 

Willow immediately grasped her chin and head to turn it in the other direction. Luz finally carried her glance over to the flight of stairs and she became entranced at who she saw coming down. 

Down the stairs walking so modestly was none other than Amity Blight. Like it was some uplifting movie scene, a calming, enchanting song began to play in the ballroom as the Blight walked down those steps slowly. She was clothed in a long, flowing pink dress that revealed her shoulders and draping sleeves that were like the wings of a bird. the dress sparkled down at the bottom like glittering stars. She wore gold tear-shaped earrings, a gold-&-emerald necklace, a dab of pink eyeshadow over her eyelids and pearly pink slips. The young Blight's hair was fully down and looked far more wild than it usually does. It curled about like a lion's mane. 

As soon as Amity gone down the last step, everyone had their eyes on her, a mixed bag of emotions etched on their faces. However, Luz's expression appeared to be both both intensely happy and love struck. The human pushed by her mentor and friends in a sort of entranced move and went over to her. Amity blushed and smiled as her crush closed in on her. 

"Amity........." Luz marveled. "I-....You-just....just wow. WOW. Y-You're so-...Oh my gosh I don't have any words to describe how-how STUNNING you look."

Amity giggled. "I took your recommendation into consideration. What do you think?" 

"Fantastic, majestic, godly, fabulous, epic, gorgeous," the Latina gushed. "I could go on and on with synonyms for amazing, and yet they'd all be understatements. You are just so-...Wow." 

Amity laughed heartily. What a dork that human is. 

Luz unintentionally raised her hand to Amity's face, the latter gingerly laying her own atop of it. The Latina felt like she was gonna cry. 

Sweet Titan! She thought Amity during Grom was at her most beautiful. But tonight proved that to be wrong. Her friend looked so amazing and happy to just be with her. But something was brewing inside Luz as well. Was it admiration? Breathlessness? 

Love? 

Too bad Luz couldn't ponder on it for too long. A gentle hand rested on the human's shoulder, causing her to turn and meet gazes with Valentine. She moved to the side, allowing the bat to meet with Amity. 

"You look absolutely breathtaking, Amity," Valentine smiled. 

"I...appreciate your words, Val," the Blight girl answered, running her hand through her wild hair. "As do you." 

Valentine smirked. "What wonderful words from a girl who deserves them more." 

Amity simply nodded. 

"ATTENTION ALL BALL-GOERS," Principal Bump's voice rang through the ballroom. "AS PER TRADITION, THE CHAMPIONS OF THE GAMES GET TO HAVE THE FIRST DANCE. WOULD ALL FOUR OF OUR CHAMPIONS ALONG WITH THEIR PARTNERS COME ONTO CENTER STAGE FOR THE DANCE TO COMMENCE!" 

"Ah, it is time," Valentine said then turned to see Amity's forlorn expression. "Are you okay, Ames?" 

"Hm?" Amity blinked. "O-Oh! Yeah, I'll be fine! Don't worry about me! I'll survive not dancing with my best friend..." 

Valentine cocked a brow but decided to not push it. "Well in that case, shall we depart?" 

"Sure." Amity hesitantly took the bat's hand and both witches left for the ballroom. 

Meanwhile, Gilda had already claimed her partner and was preparing to dance with this student in the dance floor. On the other hand, Loki and Luz were partnerless. The whole stress of getting something nice to wear and just being with Valentine made the Latina completely forget the biggest part of a ballroom dance. And then there's Loki, a jock who had one too many possible suitors but never paid enough attention to even pick one. However, both champions will not be single for long. 

"Well shit, looks like it's time," Eda acknowledged - she ruffled Luz's hair. "You break a leg out there, kiddo. Show those other shameful shmucks who the real dance queen is. Make me proud!" 

"Can do," Luz smiled and raised both thumbs up. 

"Now that's my girl," Eda laughed. "Can't wait to see ya on the dance floor! Have fun, Luz!" 

With that, the Owl lady left behind a very nervous Luz and went to join some of the adults. Luz still had her thumbs up when her mentor was still in arm's distance for her. But when Eda was at a certain amount of length away, the human's thumbs and happy expression fell. 

"I completely forgot about getting a date..." Luz groaned. "Any of you guys free?" 

"Sorry, kid," Viney sighed. "Emira and I are paired up. And I think both Jerbs and Barcus have their own dates tonight." 

"Gus?" 

"No can do, Luz," Gus regretfully answered. "As much as I want to dance with a wonderful human, I already had other plans." 

Right beside Gus appeared a much more fashionably acceptable illusion of himself. The illusion waved politely. 

"You asked out....a clone....of YOURSELF...to the ball?" Willow narrows her eyes at her friend. 

"Yes, and you know VERY WELL no one would dance with someone that dresses like a freshly coughed up owl pellet," Gus interjected. 

"What about you Willow?" Luz meekly asked. 

Just as Willow was going to voice her answer, a tiny tap could be felt on her shoulder. She slowly turned and came face-to-face with Loki Minotonn, her huge crush. Her face immediately flashed red as she stared into the older witch's festive orange eyes. 

"Willow? Willow Park?" Loki spoke quietly. 

"Hi Loki!!" Willow shouted. "I mean...how are you tonight?" 

"You are beautiful witch," Loki complimented. "Would you...would you care to dance?" 

Willow felt herself spike in temperature. "I would love to yes please!" 

Loki did not pay mind to how awkward this confrontation was, and instead just took the plant witch's hands in his and walked her to the ballroom. She was smiling so widely and waved happily to her friends. 

"We should...probably go now." Viney said. "See ya later, Luz!" 

"Have fun being the center of attention~" Emira tested as she and her girlfriend left. Gus left with his illusion as well, leaving Luz alone. 

Actually, Luz was not alone. She didn't realize that Edric was still right beside her, what hunt the group fade into just the two of them. The two lone wolves with no dates. The two single people looked at each other. 

"Wanna be my dance partner?" Luz asked. 

"Heck yeah," Edric chuckled - The two hi-fived. 

Around the center of the dance floor, a circular wall of children, teachers and their respective families watched as all four champions entered. Loki, Gilda and Valentine all looked like they knew what they were doing while Luz was quaking in her shoes. Oh, it was so awkward that she was to dance with someone much older than her. 

"Psst, Luz," Edric whispered. "Hands on my waist, remember?"

"Yeah I got it, I just REALLY don't wanna do this," Luz wheezed. "No offense to you, though. You're pretty great." 

Meanwhile, Amity and Valentine were having a tad bit of trouble dancing to the music. More so in Valentine's case. His wings would periodically flutter about while trying to keep balance, similar to a bird attempting to stay on a branch. One time, Valentine moved forward to the beat of the music, only for him to painfully jab his foot atop Amity's. 

The girl winces - Valentine quietly gasps. 

"Amity, I am terribly sorry," the bat apologized. "I-I did not mean to-"

"You don't know how to dance...do you?" Amity asked through the pain. 

Valentine felt a twinge of shame, lowering his head. The other witch took this as a yes. Sighing in an unclear emotion, Amity forcibly made her the more dominant lad of the dance. 

"Hands firmly latched on my waist, eyes on me," Amity yanked at the bat's hands to move from her shoulders to her waist. "Keep feet mirrored to me and do NOT move feet unless your partner moves too. Vice versa with me."

Valentine was taken aback by how much of an expert this girl was of dancing. 

"I...I assume this to not be your first dance with someone," the bat inquired. 

Amity was silent for a little while. "No." 

"I figured as much," Valentine nodded. "And I wonder who it was you danced with last." 

Both witches looked over to Luz and Edric attempting to dance more politely like the others around them. Clearly both of them never danced in a refined fashion before. Amity had to chuckle a little bit at how weird Luz was, and how easy it was for her to just act like herself in public. Unlike your's truly. But the good feeling stopped when Luz looked over and both met eyes. The Latina smiled sadly and waved to her. Amity did the same, turning back to dance with Valentine and sighed longingly. 

Valentine caught onto this quickly. "Amity, clearly you are thinking of something. Is it about your girlfriend over there?" 

"First of all, we have a curtsy to do," Amity warned. 

Valentine completed a fairly decent curtsy with Amity - the other Champions did the same around them. 

"Secondly, OH MY GOD NOT MY GIRLFRIEND," Amity gasped, blushing furiously. 

"Sorry sorry sorry," Valentine perked back his ears from the noise. "I just...assumed you and Miss Noceda were...more than just friends." 

Amity sighed. "To be very fair, and don't tell anyone lose about this, but I-" The Blight girdled gulped. 

"I have a crush on Luz." 

Well there it is, ladies and gentlemen.

Valentine, though surprised, nodded. "I see. I should've guessed as much." 

He looked over again, the two friends still dancing. 

The bat did notice the Latina was still having fun with Edric, but her expression etched a look of forlornness. Those two girls really loved each other that much, huh? It hurt Valentine that he was keeping them away because of business reasons. But was he to do? 

Amity slumped over into Valentine's shoulder and sighed again. Valentine was shocked by this action. Though the bat felt some warmth when the girl decided to break from the dance and hugged him as they continued. Eyes from Eda and some others parents widened. 

"I missed you so much, Val," Amity confessed. Valentine wrapped his wings around the Blight girl's body. 

"So have I..." Valentine sighed, closing his eyes. "You...You really care for Luz, don't you?" 

"Yeah..." The teal-haired girl nodded in the embrace. 

Valentine suddenly sparked an idea. He turned a final time to look at Luz who also noticed him staring right at her. 

"What if...What if I were to help with your predicament?" The bat smiled. 

Amity shot up from the embrace. "You? Help ME out with ROMANCE? What good will that do? Besides, the dance is still going on and my parents will obviously be disappointed." 

Valentine sighed and twirled his fingers. Just as Amity was going to question what Valwntine just did, the girl found herself snapping out of existence and away from him. And a few seconds later, Amity soon realized she swapped places with her brother when she found herself being saved by Luz. 

"WHOA AMITY!" Luz exclaimed, holding onto Amity's sides to prevent her from falling. "Neat trick, Valentine!" 

Meanwhile, Edric found himself being held from the falling to the ground by a familiar face. He looked up and found him inches away from Valentine, smiling widely. Edric's face lit up just as bright as his sister's would. 

"Hello Edric," Valentine greeted the Blight boy. "Would you care to dance while your sister and her 'friend' are to themselves?"

"YESSIR!" Edric yelled enthusiastically. 

The two continued the Champions' dance. Amity and Luz finally had each other to dance with, and Amity was whispering thank you's to Valentine in her mind. 

"Valentine is a very good guy, isn't he?" Luz chirped. 

"Heh, yep. He sure is," Amity said, blushing. 

Luz placed her hands down and gripped her partner's sides and began to guide her correctly around the dance floor. The two did not keep their eyes of each other, even with the twirls, spins, and when Luz lifted Amity up that one time. Eda looked very impressed by the sidelines, clapping when she wasn't downing a glass of wine. There was some tension in the moment, however. Not just with Amity's writhing lesbian panicking buried underneath, but some higher status people were staring at them. More specially, Valentine's friends and their parents, and some teachers. They scanned as both Amity and Luz AND Valentine and Edric danced in an orderly fashion across the ballroom floor. 

But Amity did not really have any intentions to stress about that. 

Luz was so close to her. She had to act now, or else the ball would be worth nothing. She decided to speak up. 

"Hey Luz?" The girl spoke timidly. 

"Hm?" Luz hummed. "What's up, girl?"

"I...I never got a chance to say how nice you looked tonight," Amity spoke. "I am so glad you're having a great time at the ball, too. Even after all that bad stuff from before."

"Oh yeah, it's no biggie, Amity," Luz laughed. "Don't think about hurting Willow, though! We both made up at the party a couple days ago!"

"Wasn't planning on doing so!" Amity waved her hands in defense, blush deepening. "But seriously, no one, and I mean NO ONE, hurts my Luz in that way!" 

Luz snorted. "'My Luz'? You really ARE going soft on me, aren'tcha Miss Blight?" 

"SWEET HELL I JUST SAID THAT," Amity--realizing what she just said--gasped. "Oh merciful Dallica..." The Blight girl had to hide her face in shame. 

"Oh no Amity it's okay," Luz exclaimed, trying to reassure her friend. "It's okay. I'm just teasing you! Please don't be upset..." 

Amity finally crawled out of her metaphorical shell and looked up into Luz's comforting brown eyes. Tiny snowflakes flew about the ballroom, making look like the Latina's hair shine. The teal-haired girl gulped and continued the dance. 

"Remember the news report? About us?" Amity asked. 

"Y'know, now that you mention it, Amity, I am a tad concerned about that," Luz confessed. "Not about us being close, but more about ME."

"How so?" 

"Well, Belos and the Emperor's Coven DO seem to want me dead," Luz laughed nervously. "And the fact my face has been plastered on every magic ball AND newspaper under the sun, I just...am a little nervous is all." 

From that statement, Amity did notice the overwhelming presence of guards guarding the dance floor and acting like Liz wasn't there. And the added bonus of those higher class folk and their families judging them. Anyone could be a snitch and put Luz's life at risk. 

Amity's ears drooped, but she also had a look of determination. 

"Well, if Belos ever dared to grab his filthy hands on you," Amity spoke stoically. "He'd sure as HELL have to go though me. And Eda and King and Ed and Em and Gus and Willow and Viney and-"

"Okay okay okay," Luz chuckled, wiping a tear from her scarred eye. "I get what you're throwing at me, Amity. But seriously. You're just saying that just to make me feel better." 

"That's not what I said-" 

At this point, Amity's logical brain had completely shut down and her emotional brain has taken the wheel. With no hesitation or second thoughts, Amity placed a soft kiss on Luz's nose. 

"-I'm only stating facts." 

Luz curled a goofy smile and began to blush. Man, Amity has changed so much over just a small amount of time. And Luz couldn't be happier than that. 

"I guess we should get back to dancing," Amity said, blushing. 

"After you, Miss Blight," Luz giggled. 

Back in the crowd watching the champions, Eda seemed the most surprised. But a the same time, a proud smile slowly crept onto her face. Beside her, Julius looked to finally let go of some tension and sighed a breath of relief.

"It's about fucking time those two adorable dorks danced together," Eda snorted. "I'm gonna need another drink." 

"Finally, we can dance," Emira sighed. "Let's get this party really started, Vinester!"

"Couldn't agree with ya more, sweetheart," Viney agreed. 

The rest of the night went by in a blink of an eye. There was not a lot Luz could even remember from the night, but there were some nice moments. While Luz and her friends danced about to various songs, Willow and Loki spent the majority of the time talking about stuff. Well, Willow honestly did most of the talking and her crush just listened. Viney's brother Twig was not much of a dancer, so he instead played with Puddles, King and the Palismen Owlbert and Petra. King was the least enthusiastic about it. 

Luz pretty much shared plenty of dances with almost everyone. When not with Amity, the Latina shared a dance with Valentine, tangoed with both twins, and even with the other students she originally was gonna ask out. One time, Eda--thoroughly drunk from many glasses of wine--offered to dance with her apprentice while accompanied by 50's styled music. 

It was...an experience, to put it simply. But it was nice that Luz and Eda could bond some more over some silly little dance party. Many witnessed the dances, but not the good kind to say the least. 

While people like Julius and some random folks watched in amusement, there were some other unsavory people. Reagan watched the party from a lone table, jotting down notes in a journal. He paused at one point to cast another "healing spell" on himself. Valentine's friends watched with varied looks as their leader danced with Luz and some other folks they didn't approve of. 

Finally, after all her dance energy was seemingly zapped out, Luz retired to a table occupied by her friends and a drunken Eda. The older witch had her head down on the table, fast asleep, with an equally as tired King in her lap. The Latina's friends smiled once they saw Luz approach. 

"Well well well, there she is," Emira laughed. "A little party animal, huh?"

"Haha. Wouldn't go by any other label," Luz sighed, flopping down on a seat. "What a night. All the dancing, food, and music. What a time to be alive." 

"You really know how to party when Grom isn't involved, huh?" Amity joked. 

"Sure! Let's go with that!" Luz laughed - she turned to see that two of her friends were missing. Edric and Willow. 

"Hey, where's Ed and my girl Willow?" 

"Plant witch is dancin' it up with jock guy over there...and Ed be talkin," Eda, still drunk, pointed over the crowd. 

Willow and Loki were, in fact, dance to the beat of a more upbeat rock-esque song you'd hear from the 90's. Willow was having the time of her life, bobbing her body to the music. Loki, on the other hand, was much less enthusiastic about rocking out to the music but he still enjoyed it to an extent. 

As for Edric, he was on the other side of the dance hall, seemingly pouring his heart out to Valentine. Near them were a couple of Valentine's buddies waiting very impatiently about something. Luz found that very...interesting. 

Back at the table with Luz and the others, Emira cuddled up with her girlfriend Viney and slept peacefully in her arms. Amity felt rather tired herself and decided to rest her own head on Luz's shoulder. Luz smiled widely at these adorable scenes, but noticed a very upset looking Gus (and his illusion) sitting across from her. 

"Didn't get any dancing done, Gus?" Jerbo interrupted. 

"Nope," Gus groaned. "As much as I WANTED to, there is NO WAY people would've NOT batten an eye at me in THIS outfit on and literally dancing with MYSELF." 

The clone of Gus slumped down - Luz frowned. 

"Well, I sure hope you find at least a tiny of enjoyment in the party," the Latina grinned. 

Suddenly, there was a shift in the seats, and next to Luz and Amity sat a very disappointed Edric. He wore a huge frown and let out an even larger sigh. 

"Okay, what's gotten you all sad, Eddy?" Amity asked, slowly opening her eyes. 

"I confessed to Valentine," Edric answered - immediately, Luz and the others all looked over with intrigue. 

"Whoa wait! That's awesome!!" Luz squealed. 

"Spill it, kid," Eda slurred. "What he say? Anythin' good?" 

Edric gulped. "He said he was...flattered. But h-he explained he didn't share the same feelings." 

And just like that, everyone groaned in disappointment and slunk back down in their seats. 

"Ah, fuck that lil' diseased rodent anyways," Eda scoffed, making a hiccup afterwards. Edric proceeded to choke on his own air. 

"EDA!" Luz gasped. "Don't say that! How could you say something so foul about a guy as sweet as Val?? Ignore her, Edric! She's just too drunk to think when's a good time to mock someone." 

"Eh, whatever you say, kiddo," Eda rolled her eyes and rested her face on the table once again. "Well dang, I need a nap..." 

"Well, Eda's partially right," Amity shrugged. "PARTIALLY. However, there will be other witches out there who WILL love you !" 

"Yeah, I think there are plenty of students at Hexside who'd love some of that 'Blight status'" Viney snickered, winking. 

"Oh sweet Dallica not like that!!" Edric exclaimed, his face lighting up. Amity began to laugh. 

"I'm guessin' bright blushing runs in the family," Viney whispered playfully to Luz, who giggled. 

"But in all seriousness, Ed, I am so sorry Valentine didn't feel the same," Luz said. "I sure hope you'll be okay."

"Oh, yeah," Edric answered happily. "I'll only cry for, like, a month at the minimum, and then I will be okay! I'll eventually find my soulmate!"

Luz smiled, but it quickly faltered when looking over. Valentine was exiting the ballroom to either use the restroom or perhaps a drink. And behind him, the mantis girl, older lizard boy, and the slicked-back hair witch looked at one another with evil smiles and began to exit out the same exit. No one in the area seemed to catch wind of this and just kept on partying and drinking their beverages. The Latina, now thoroughly skeptical, squinted her eyes. While that was going on in the background, Viney was having a conversation about her family. 

"-and you'd think a parent would stop at just three kids, or somethin'," Viney continued her rant. "But, I guess ma and dad really wanted 15 kids or something. Though that's just what it FEELS like. I got around 8 brothers and 6 sisters, including me AND my darling lil' brother Twig." 

"Sheesh, I only have my uncle and cousin Humfrey," Jerbo nervously said. "I wouldn't stand to live in a house with over 17 other people." 

"Hey, Luz? Are you hearing this??" Amity said enthusiastically. She saw Luz did not look back and began to look concerned. "Uh, Luz? Is something wrong?" 

The Latina began to slowly get up from her seat while taking to Amity. "Sorry for the radio silence, but could you and the other guys hold down the fort? I sense some suspicious shenanigans going on."

"Um, we can...keep the table occupied is that what you mean," Amity blinked. 

"Yes yes, that's fine," Luz sighed. "But fear not, Miss Amity Blight....and others! I, Luzura, your FEARLESS CHAMPION, shall return! Fare thee well, witches!" 

Taking a moment to take a dramatic bow, Luz began to run away from the table and off into the main hall ways. 

"ALSO DON'T LET EDA DRINK ANOTHER DROP OF ALCOHOL WHILE I'M GONE 'KAY BYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEE!!" And finally, the girl had disappeared in the crowd of jolly witches. 

"Ya ain't my mother," Eda annoyedly argued. "Urgh....I'm gon' be sick..." 

"Whoa whoa whoa! You better not spit up bile all over my fur, or 500 years bad luck for ALL OF YOU," King barked.

While the drunken bickering on the other side continued, Gus remained silent in his chair, sulking. His illusion was still sitting right beside him patiently. 

"So, do you wanna dance NOW? " the illusion asked. 

"No." Gus said monotony, not even looking over to his illusion. 

"...oh." The illusion sadly uttered out, he slowly fade out of existence at the result of his answer. His caster did not care in the slightest. 

Luz found it rather difficult to guide herself through the suffocating crowds of demons and witches alike partying it up and downing alcoholic beverages. It was a crowded ballroom, the Latina finding it surprising how poplar this place was for dances and other events. One thing she didn't like about the Witching Moon Ball, however, is the very obvious presence of Emperor's guards. It was like they were just waiting to catch Luz if she even breathed in their direction. At first, Luz did not really pay mind to them and went on her way when in public. But after the terrorist attack caused by those SAME GUARDS not too long ago, it left a sour taste in her mouth every time she came into contact with one. 

The Latina finally came into proximity of the ballroom exit, and barged for it. But just then, she crashed into a man. A very slimy, amphibian man, to say more specifically. Reagan was partially on the floor, rubbing the lower region of his back. 

"Damn kids," the frog witch growled. 

"Ay Dios Mío," Luz gasped - on the floor, she found her egg-shaped artifact and scrambled to pick it up. "I'm so so sorry, Mr. Diablo..."

Without using saying a word, Reagan picked up the music box and handed it back to the scrambling girl. 

"Ya really gotta be careful with artifacts as fragile as that, you little menace," Reagan sighed in agitation. "Huh. An interesting outfit choice, Miss Noceda."

"Yeah thanks," Luz answered in a hurry and quickly got back on her feet with music box in hand. "I would very much like to...converse with you, but I saw some pretty peculiar people in the halls. Suspicious activity! So I gotta split. I love your suit, Reagan! Bye!" 

The Latina ran off into the hall at last and followed the witches. Reagan dusted himself off and looked on in the direction the human ran off to. 

"Hmm. Suspicious activity?" The witch huffed. "Sure. You go on and deal with that 'suspicious activity.'" The frog witch's eye glistened again, prompting him to twirl his finger again. He then took a pill and left the scene. 

The farther the Latina fled down the hall, the more she worried about Valentine. She knew he was a capable illusions it with two massive wings that could double as shields AND non-magical weapons. But at the same time, he was a man who wielded his words more than his fists. Or magic, in this case. But the girl rushed on. 

However, Luz stopped in her tracks when she heard some familiar voices, especially a more posh male's voice. Valentine was nearby! The Latina ran into another smaller hallway, darker than the main ballroom and the other halls. And at last, she saw four figures in the hall, and one of them was very upset judging by the tone of his voice. 

"Enough! I do not need you or any of the others protesting what I can and cannot do," Valentine growled, but in a restrained manner. "It is very nice...I guess, but I am your friend. Your LEADER. I do not want to-"

Luz stopped when seeing the arguing and hid swiftly behind a wall. She continued to watch at a distance.

"Oh, Val, don't be so passionate about having other friends," Monika--the mantis witch--rolled her eyes. 

"Besides," The slick-haired witch Derek, added. "What's so special about...the human and those other friends?" Derek attempted to sound serious, but the anyway he had poison leaking in the word 'human' did not mask his true emotions well. 

Valentine struggled with his composure for a hot minute. "Er, I-well, th-the others are not necessarily SPECIAL, but they-"

"Y'know, Valentine," a lizard boy interrupted. "You are the leader, yes. But sometimes, the others and I worry about you..."

"What?" Valentine squeaked, flabbergasted - from a long distance away, Luz gasped very quietly. 

"Yeah, we REALLY are wondering about something," Monika agreed, her voice a combo of concern and a little bit of sarcasm. "You've lost A LOT of people in your life. Amity, her siblings, that 'half a witch' Willow girl, and even your mom." 

Derek decided to join in. "Come ON! That girl is a human. If the others you lost are magic wielders, what makes your think that creature will live to stay alive with you, too-"

"You will NOT speak about Miss Noceda like that," Valentine squawked. The bat's wings flared up with aggression. 

Rather than cower or attempt to apologize for that harsh statement, the other kids laughed. They laughed like what they heard was just some joke. Oh, it tormented Valentine and only made him angrier. 

"Whoa, we really struck a nerve, huh?" The lizard boy huffed in amusement. "But really, why has the human been successful? That really intrigues me." 

"Now see here-" 

"She has no magic, no strengths, she's just a weak nerd with vine arms," Monika joked. 

"Will you three stop pestering on about her and listen to me?? I am your LEADER!" Valentine exclaimed. 

"Oh yeah? Oh REALLY?" Derek chuckled amongst the other two. "Is that girl, like, a er....trigger word or something? Oh, sweet Titan it is!" 

"Awwwwww, Val's gone soft...for a HUMAN! That damn Luz. Luz Luz Luz Luz Luz! Like that, huh? Luz Luz Luz-"

Luz had enough. Normally, the Latina was pretty optimistic and barely ever gotten angry for a certain reason. But this teasing, this teasing towards their own FRIEND, it boiled Luz's blood. She wanted to return the favor to Valentine for standing up for her during the Propoganda at school. So she utilized that newfound anger and barged towards the well-dressed witches. 

"HEY! You stop that nonsense, you mean little sorcerers!" Luz cried out in protest, stomping over to them and posing a heroic-esque pose. 

The four witches looked over and all stared at Luz. Valentine was very surprised while the other looked very...happy to see her. 

"Luz?" Valentine spoke quietly. 

The three other witches laughed to each other and approached the girl with an overconfident stride. 

"Wow, what timing!!" Monika laughed. "We were JUST talking about you, 'Luz'er!" 

"Nice outfit, you weird little creature," the lizard witch gawked. "Who dressed you up? The Owl Lady found some trashy clothing in the pile of human stuff she brings home??"

"Now listen here, you bullies," Luz fought back. "Nothing you'll say is gonna make me mad or any other similar emotion! Now, by the power of the witch-in training, Luzura Noceda, you WILL apologize to Valentine and never hurt him again! That is not roleplay, that is an ORDER." 

"What is up with people being so emotional?" Derek shrugged. "We didn't even hurt him. We were only having fun! Right, Val?"

Luz huffed. "You're pretty ignorant to believe using me as a quote-on-quote 'trigger word' to torment your FRIEND is FUN." 

"Say, how's the bruise been doing since the last time we saw you?" Monika changed the subject whilst scanning the human. 

Then came the most uncomfortable part. The lizard boy grabbed the human from behind and kept her back. While at the same time, Monika and Derek went to remove her suit to check out the wound. The wound on Luz's tummy was still there, but it had faded to a less prominent shade of brown. 

"Well I'll be. That bruise did heal pretty fast." Derek whistled, chuckling while observing the almost non-existent bruise on Luz's tummy. 

"H-Hey! L-Let go!!" Luz tried to wriggle out of the lizard's grasp but he was too strong. 

"Take a look at these ears, guys," the mantis girl sneered. "They're pretty cute, huh? So round. So strange." She also noticed her scar. 

"Ugh, and what a disgusting scar she got. It's all red and flaky!" 

Monika reached to touch her face when she felt a spike of magic hold her back and away. Same with the lizard boy who was quickly tell orated back and restrained by blue magic. And lastly, at the climax of this short moment, Derek felt a tight grip latch onto his wrist and pull him away. Valentine was looming over him with a look of pure, unfiltered malice. 

"HOW DARE YOU TOUCH HER LIKE THAT!?" Valentine boomed, his wings flared out. "Have any of you no common sense??" 

Derek, with a look of annoyance, yanked his arm away from his friend's grasp. 

"Okay, Valentine," Derek sighed. "This isn't funny anymore. Your admiration for this human is getting sickening." 

"Ugh, why are you obsessed with this human anyways?" Monika squinted her eyes at the bat. 

"Eh, it doesn't matter," the lizard boy scoffed. 

The lizard witch proceeded to knock Luz to the wall and out of the way. Luz gasped and slammed against the wall, making her head hurt. 

"Watch your strength, Levi," Valentine scolded, then proceeding to go over to check up on Luz. "Luz, what are you doing here? Why did you defend me?" 

"I owed you a standing-up-to-bullies favor," Luz chuckled, trying to make a joke from this situation. "What was I supposed to do? Stand by in the hallway and watch your friends gang up on you? That wouldn't be a 'good witch' thing to do." 

Valentine flashed a tiny sad smile. "Luz, I-" 

Suddenly, Monika and Levi both grabbed onto Valentine and Luz respectively and dragged them in different directions. 

"Whoa okay, going off now," Luz yelped. 

Derek walked about the two groups, eyeing both parties. 

"Valentine, it is time you PICK who you choose to associate yourself with. Us and the others, or that foul human. Not BOTH." 

"You are really doing this," Valentine was livid. "After many years of letting you do your own things. After all the kindness I have given to you and others, you would go as far as to make me choose between you or someone better?? You are...you are-You are terrible witches, the lot of you are!!" 

"Terrible? TERRIBLE?" Derek gasped - Levi and Monika also appeared to take offense to this. "I don't know who you are, but Luz and her strange manipulative friends have been taking advantage of you."

"Oh, that's it," Monika growled. "The human's gone too far. Let's show her a thing or two about taking our friends." 

With a twirl of a finger and the tightening of grips, Derek summoned a small blunt object and grasped it in his hands, an evil grin creeping up on his face. The boy was prepared to strike a heavy blow into the shivering Latina's side, Valentine pleaded one last time. 

"What you're doing is a huge mistake. You will soon regret such a heinous act!"

"Hm, really?" Derek teased. "And what are you gonna do about it? Get your father? Oh, or your mother?? The gods know how HILARIOUS that will be! A ghost attempting to punish a tangible bo-"

And like a lightning bolt striking its 'prey', Valentine finally snapped out of sheer rage, and in the heated moment, shoved Levi out of his grasp and slashed violently across Derek's face with his claws. The latter screamed, dropped the weapon, and cowered away. Monika and Levi were shocked and put in their place; Luz was free and went off to the side. 

But the bat was nowhere near being done with them. Valentine marched over to where the other witch was on the floor, quaking and clutching his new bloody scars. He attempted to try summoning another weapon, but his arms and wrists were tied down and rendered useless via an illusion spell. 

"You scum have NO right to insult a wonderful woman such as my mother," Valentine did not look like himself - his expression was feral, his fangs bared and claws out. "AND THEN YOU HAD THE AUDACITY TO BRUTALLY HURT AN INNOCENT GIRL???"

His own statement only made the bat angrier. With his wings fully spread out, Valentine made a sort of barrier around the two. And somehow, the membranes of his wings began to glow blue with what was probably either extremely powerful illusion magic or some very dangerous spell not part of the covens. 

"I WILL HAVE YOUR BODY SCATTERED FOR THIS!!!!!" 

Monika and Levi instantly snapped out of their confused daze and wanted to take action.

"Hey! Get away from Derek, you freak!" Monika barked. 

She and Levi both attempted to gang up on Valentine and pry him away (and maybe knock some sense into him as a bonus). Derek was struggling to get out of the illusion grip so, but surprise-surprise. Valentine's magic is stronger than he or any of his other friends give him credit for. 

Luz had to do something. Valentine was in the midst of a blind rage, and his friends seemed to look like they are gonna pummel him with magic. So, she got up and dusted herself off to join in the struggle. Her first target was Monika, who was summoning a weapon of her own. Luz utilized a spare ice glyph she had to freeze the mantis' feet to the floor. Then, the Latina attempted to grapple with Levi and keep him from violently prying Valentine away. On the other side of the struggle, Derek tried using his legs to kick Valentine off him. But Valentine was having none of it. 

The human girl managed to keep Levi down enough to try and talk some sense into Valentine. He was acting like a scared, upset animal, and she wanted to help him. 

"Val, listen to me!" Luz begged, trying to keep the lizard boy in her grasp. "You gotta snap outta it! Derek is a horrible guy, but hurting him is not gonna make it better!"

Valentine responded with a swift walk from one of his wings, knocking Luz to the ground and launching Levi away. He hissed like some delusional cat, baring his teeth. 

"DO NOT SPEAK LIES TO ME!" The bat roared. 

Luz was on the floor in a lot of pain. She clutched her re-bruised stomach again while her scarred eye spiked. While that happened, Valentine grabbed Derek and Monika in both his hands, freeing the mantis from Luz's trap and slammed then to the ground. Some blood trickled out of their mouths from just the impact. He also placed a boot on Monika's chest in order for her not to squirm away like the bug she was. 

"Ay...duele..." The Latina whimpered.

The sound of a weak voice made the infuriated Valentine look over, and his face began to change. His eyes dilated one again, his snout no longer wrinkled, and his fangs hidden again in his mouth. The bat folded his wings up and went over to comfort Luz. 

"Luz?" Valentine said timidly. "Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? Did you get hurt at a-"

When he reached out his hand, the bat witch saw that his palm and claws were covered in freshly spilt blood. It dribbled down onto his white suit, and some spattered on his snout and cheek. He gasped, horrified. Then he looked around him. Monika was out cold, Levi was practically knocked to the side of hall, Luz was struggling to get to her senses and lastly...Derek. The filthy witch was on the floor, guarding his bloodied face with his hands, whimpering. His wrists and ankles had bruises and scars on them from how hard Val's illusionary chains were. 

Valentine was mortified. He hurt his best friends for saying a couple mean words to him. Despite them fully deserving it--mentioning his mother in bad faith and almost hurting innocent people again--, Valentine never wanted to cause any harm to anyone. What was worst of all, HE did actually become his enemy and hurt Luz. 

He. Hurt. LUZ. 

The bat, his ears drooped and looking like he was going to cry, spread his wings and took off out of the hallway and back into the main hall. Luz finally got to her feet once again and found her esteemed host to have vanished. She had to go catch up to him. 

"Valentine! Come back!" Luz called out to Valentine, rushing down the all in hopes of finding him again. 

Normally, Valentine would be polite enough to stop and listen to the Latina's begging for him to come back. But to the broken bat, the damaged had been done. 

🌟🌟🌟

The group did not exactly follow Luz's orders of 'keeping the fort down'. Whatever that meant. So instead, the twins, Viney, Jerbo, Barcus, and Amity went their separate ways to do their own things. Dancing, getting some food, talking with other people. Fun stuff! 

Amity, however, was waiting rather impatiently by the entrance to the ballroom. Luz had been gone for quite a while, and her naturally panicky lesbian senses were not helping the situation whatsoever. Up and down the halls she scanned, but no Luz or Valentine to be found. 

Meanwhile, Gus was by himself with a knocked out and sleepy Eda, practicing some of his magic. He noticed Willow was still with Loki during the whole duration of the ball, bringing up any conversation-worthy subject she had in mind. And the jock lad just...nodded. And his gaze didn't look THAT interested in whatever plant fact or magic thing she was currently talking about. Plus, Gus was a big wary of what Luz called Loki the other day: A Himbo.

What in the hell was a HIMBO? Luz never really explained that one, so it was unknown to anyone, especially Gus in this case. Then the young boy had an idea. Eda seemed to know a lot about reading people AND Earth. 

"Hey, Eda?" Gus quietly said. 

The witch perked up, snorting a bit while waking herself up. She was severely hungover and looked pretty bad. 

"Huh? Wh' happen?" Eda slurred, rubbing her eyes. 

"That Loki guy," Gus began. "You've probably known some jocks. Why do you think Luz would call him a certain word out of the blue?" 

Eda blinked a few times. "Loki....Loki, huh? Er, don't know much 'bout him." The old witch hissed when a sharp pain shot through her skull. "Agh. This fuckin' headache..." 

Gus groaned. "Figures. Well, I sure hope Willow's alright." 

Then, after shaking herself off, the Owl Lady lazily got out of her seat and sat next to the young illusionist. 

"Huh, now that'cha mention his name," Eda began. "I once tol' Luz this. Don't trust them jocks..."

"Don't trust jocks, huh?" Gus parroted. "Well, Boscha was a jock and often did hang around Willow just to be a bother to her. And now Willow is dancing with some guy of the same breed..."

"EXACTLY!" Eda hiccuped. "You'll never know what a jock's thinkin' because they be thinking about themselves. Never sharin' their thoughts t' others, just listenin'. It's always so bizarre." 

"Hey, that is exactly what Loki is doing!" Gus pointed out - he saw from a distance that Willow was still talking away about something and Loki was just...listening while polishing his single horn. 

"Hey. I probably shouldn' get so suspicious...," the Owl Lady yawned. "He's jus some guy. Hell, maybe even the word...what was it? Himbo? Maybe the word's just some harmless phrase. A nickname, at worst." 

"You're right, Eda!" Gus spoke proudly. "I'm gonna go over and see what's so great about this Loki Minotonn guy!"

"Wait, hol' up-" Eda tried to keep the boy back, but he already teleported away to Willow and Loki. From Eda's lap, King arose from his nap. 

"You have made a grave mistake," King says. "NOW GIVE YOUR ROYAL HIGHNESS HIS BELLY RUBS!"

Willow finished passionately talking about her love a certain carnivorous plant when Loki stood up. 

"Got some business to work with," he proclaimed. "I will return, Park." 

"Please call me Will-" Loki left the area before Willow could correct him. "-Aaaand he's gone. Them jocks, I guess." 

Suddenly, a cloud of light blue magic appeared right by her and out came Gus. The boy enthusiastically bowed to his friend while that friend in-question was taken aback. 

"Good evening, Willow," Gus greeted the plant witch in a posh voice. 

"AUGUSTUS!" Willow rebalanced herself on the chair. "A little warming next time, buddy!" 

"Yes yes, that right. I am your buddy," Gus said. "And you'd never be in disbelief when your BUDDY has something to say, right??" Gus made a huge nervous-looking smile at Willow.

The plant witch, wary about her friend's expression, decided to do some questioning. 

"You're looking pretty secretive tonight, Gus. Got something to say? Or do you just like smiling widely like that?" 

"Ah well, ya see, Miss Park," the young witch tried to allude, but he failed miserably - he sighed. "Can I speak with you? It's about...boys." 

Willow was curious. "Alright then. Lead the way."

Gus and Willow guided themselves through the crowds until they were right outside in the hallway and by the stairs. Willow stood tall and looked down at Gus with a look of curiosity. 

"Okay, Gus," Willow began. "You look awfully uncomfortable about something, and I know it's NOT about the dance OR boys. So, be honest and spill." 

Despite not wanting to say a word, the young illusionist just needed to get this nagging feeling out of his head.with that in mind, Gus readjusted his tie, cleared his throat and said out loud:

"There's something up with Loki." 

Willow blinked a few times, and then she giggled a bit.

"That's it?" The plant witch laughed. "You gotta be joking, Gus." 

"No no no seriously!" Gus was not finished. "Eda and Luz were both pretty suspicious of the guy! He's a jock, and not just that either! A jock who has no AWARENESS of his surroundings! Isn't that strange?"

"Gus." Willow--after hearing her friend's rant--became more around in tone. "Where in the world did this come from? I never noticed you being suspicious of him before, so why are you freaked out by him NOW??" 

"Luz said something about Loki the other day, Willow," Gus continued on. "That kinda stuck with me and wouldn't get out of my head! I'm just trying to protect you!"

"You don't have to protect me from anything," Willow argued back. 

"Yes I do! You've had bad luck with anyone that is remotely similar to Loki," the boy further pushed the subject. "You've been bullied by Boscha for the majority of your life, and I was just...on the sidelines. I never wanna do that again! I want to help you!" 

"Gus-"

Gus was far too long gone in his rambling. "You're have trouble with those other boys during the exercise class!" 

"GUS LISTEN-"

"-And I know you and Amity are on good terms now, but Amity was a jock or team captain at one point! And I heard a rumor that Amity wanted to hurt you for hurting Luz-"

"Excuse me?" Willow looked up, shocked. 

Gus quickly gasped and covered his mouth. 

"Oh no," Gus squeaked. 

"Amity wanted to WHAT?" The plant witch growled. 

"I-I bet it's just what it is: a rumor!" Gus explained. "Besides, that was back when you were kinda being a jerk to Luz over nothing..."

"Wow, subtle today, aren't we?" Willow groaned, sitting down in the stairs. "Why are you telling me all this? And not stuff about Loki?"

"Well I-"

Just as Gus was going to answer, the young illusionist looked over to see Loki looking around. He signaled Willow from her seat to look up, to which she hesitantly agreed. They both watch the young man scan the crowd in search of something or someone, only to shake his head and head out. The Glandis High intercepted him, seemingly asking the jock for a dance. Though it took him a while, Loki accepted who,e scratching the back of his neck. Gilda placed his arms around Loki's arm as they ,over away. Gilda took a split second of her time to smirk evilly at Willow before switching back. Other students--including an orange bird-like student--did see this, but Loki did not. It was so obvious, good! ANYONE could have seen it as bright as day!

But Loki didn't. 

He didn't care. 

Gus, mouth agape, looked back over to his stunned friend. Willow had a thousand yard stare, following the new couple as they note red back into the ballroom. 

"Oh........oh Titan," Gus uttered out, ashamed of his talk earlier. "What was I thinking poking fun at him? I wasn't even trying to make a statement, just a ting to get a stupid worry off my chest-" 

He turned again and saw just how devastated Willow looked, sitting down and just watched Gilda take her crush away. Sure, it was kinda anticlimactic and pretty expected, but Willow really thought she had a shot. She REALLY did. Guess that love is a saint and a bitch, too. 

"Willow?" Gus some in a whisper. "Are you-...you okay? We could share a dance together if you wa-" 

"Y'know what, Augustus?" Willow sighed out - uh oh. "I'm kinda tired. Tonight's been...interesting. So could you just leave me for a few minutes while I...process what just happened?" 

"But I-" 

"Augustus. Go." 

Gus walked away, only to almost be rammed into by Luz rushing down the halls, slightly bruised. She continued to scream for someone's name, Gus noted, but froze in his tracks. And while the Latina was quick, she noticed her obstacle in her path, and skidded to a stop. 

"YOWZA HI GUS!" Luz yelped, skidding her feet to the floor. "Ugh! So much for THAT wild goose chase." 

"Were you looking for someone?" Gus asked. 

"Valentine was flying away from me, but I wanted to talk t-" Luz stared over Gus' shoulder and stopped the moment she saw Willow all alone on the stairs. "Willow!" 

She rushed over - upon closer inspection, the poor plant witch looked tired, frustrated, and upset all at the same time. 

"Willow....." Luz spoke. 

"Luz!" Another voice came from the other side of the hall. 

Amity rushed over and went up to Luz and Gus. She brushed herself off and tried to get her breathing back down to normal. 

"I've been wondering where you were," the Blight girl panted. "I was worried that you got hurt or lost! You DO realize how many emperor's guards are in the mansion!" 

"Oh Amity, you don't have to worry about me!" Luz chuckled. "I was just...investigating something!" 

"Wanting to hurt me, huh?" Willow spoke, making the Blight girl look down. Amity made a tiny gasp.

"Willow?" Amity spoke, her voice was small. "Oh no! What happened? Who hurt you? Did Loki-"

"Being stood up all of a sudden and then getting a shitty grin from that damn Gilda is one way to say I was 'hurt'," Willow huffed. "You know what? I'm done for the night! Can you three just...leave me alone?"

"You got stood up??" Amity gasped. "And Gilda stole him??! That's low. That's REALLY low-"

"OKAY ENOUGH," Willow lashed out. "You three are all GROUNDED. Go to your rooms and leave me alone!" 

Thoroughly surprised by their friend lashing out, Amity, Luz, and Gus all unanimously decided that it was a good time to leave. Luz was confused by what just happened, but she couldn't help but feel helpless at how her friend was feeling. However, she decided it was best to leave her alone. Gus and Amity followed behind, the Blight girl grabbing ahold of Luz's hand for some comfort. Both felt so guilty. 

When they finally left the premises, Willow sat back down on the stairs and hugged her knees up to her chest, beginning to cry. Willow then noticed a sudden creak in the stairs and a shadow looming to her left. She lifted her tired head and saw that the young orange bird boy--wearing a lavender purple vest and green tie--looked down at her. The bird boy had a look of concern on his face as he slinked down next to her. 

The young witch extended a hand to the other witch, revealing that he was holding an orange blossom. One of Willow's favorite flowers. 

"I've been practicing gardening," the boy meekly said.

Willow laughed a little bit, wiping away freshly shed tears. It turns out getting stood up wasn't so bad after all. 

🌟🌟🌟

The ball eventually died down and many party goers vacated, like all parties do. Luz insisted on taking Willow and Gus home, while saying goodbye to Amity, the twins and the delinquent kids. Luz shared a hug with everyone but seemed the most interested in hugging Amity. Both 

And when the time came to truly say goodbye, the Latina manned the staff and boosted off into the air, carrying her two quiet witches and a drunken, sleeping Eda; King was in Luz's lap as she glided through the air. It is a miracle that the young girl was taught to ride a staff over the last two months, or else she would've fell into multiple trees by now. That did help when maneuvering about in the first trial. 

Luz looked back to check on her friends and her mentor. Eda was very much asleep, snoring loudly and sitting with her body slumped over. Gus was quiet, entranced by the constellations of the night sky. But his expression showed some guilt; his feet swayed up and down as the staff flew. 

The Latina then looked at Willow. Willow was also quiet, but her demeanor seems to have improved over the last remaining hour of the Witching Moon Ball. In the young witch's hands was an orange flower, a tiny smile formed on Willow's face when staring down at the flower. Luz smiled a little bit at the sight and continued to guide the staff in the air. 

It was not long until Luz had to say goodnight to her close friends. First she stopped at Gus' place, a small house in the middle of Bonesborough. The two shared a hug, Perry Porter thanked the girl for the ride and bid them a good night. Luz was still partial about Mr. Porter, but at least she was kind enough to wish him and his family a good night as well. 

And lastly, Luz dropped off Willow at her place. It was a quaint cottage on the outskirts of Bonesborough, nestled in the woods. Willow's dads thanked Eda and Luz for chaperoning and bringing her home respectively. Luz smiled, gave her friend a lazy hug and hopped back on the staff for home. By the time Luz, Eda and King made it home, the witching min was at its highest in the sky. The stars gazed across the land and emitted their won individual colorful glows. 

Luz didn't even bother taking off her outfit, leaving it all on--except for the suit--when she slinked into bed. Though she was tired, there was so much going on inside her head. So many goods things have happened. So many questions, too. 

The Latina thought about the dances she shared, the bonding she had with her close friends. She thought about Eda's weird drunken rants and King's threats to curse her with a thousand years bad luck. Luz remembered all the hugs and the laughed she shared with Gus and Amity. 

Luz remembered the cute nose kiss Amity gave her. Luz's cheeks lit up and she squealed to herself. She's probably gonna have to return that to her. It only made sense. 

Then, Luz remembered other things. She thought about the confrontation with Reagan and how...strange he was. She thought about Valentine's friends and just how fucking horrible they were. She remembered Willow's distraught nature at the stairs and the snatching of her date made by Gilda. She remembered of the fight, the chase, and the fact Valentine fled. That name played over and over. Valentine. Valentine. VALENTINE. 

Luz couldn't help but feel terrible for Valentine. Though fighting is unwise, it wasn't his fault that he attacked his friends. They were using his dead mother and Luz's OWN NAME as scapegoats to taunt him. 

Disgusting. 

The girl's blood boiled just by how downright terrible those three were. But the moment was short lived, however, when Luz remembered something more upsetting. 

She remembered how sad the bat looked. She remembered the drooped ears, the depressed look in his eyes. The possibility that he wanted to run and cry and scream so badly. It tore up Luz's heart. 

Luz is a sensitive, compassionate person. And even though she's only known Valentine Stars for the last week, she had grown fond of the bat. There was so much pain in him that she could see, masked away by Valentine need to 'be the guide for his friends'. Whatever the hell that meant. Valentine was slowly becoming like a brother to Luz, but not yet. It's close. 

She remembered the music box in her arms, she remembered the conversation tweet Julius and Lilith. There was so much to unpack, and it will not all be answered tomorrow. 

Though her mind was still swimming and rampaging with all these memories and questions, Luz found herself drifting off into slumber. She still wondered about the music box and worried for the safety of Valentine, and finally she fell asleep. 

Well, it definitely was a night to remember.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HO BOY! This chapter was a DOOZY to write and produce! Thank you all so much for being so patient while this was in the works. I swear each chapter is getting bigger everytime I write. 
> 
> I love my details and character interactions :)  
> (Also I kinda have an obsession with writing a suspicious/antagonist character staring off in the distance/at the protagonists-)
> 
> Anywho! I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Personally, there are some hits and misses in this chapter, but overall it is pretty good. I'm VERY proud how this chapter turned out.
> 
> I hope you all have a great day, and HAPPY 2021!! ❤️
> 
> Ps: Comstructive Critisism is always welcome! Let me know what you think in the comments!


	10. A Mistake.......

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Very Important thing to discuss
> 
> [I will delete this later]

To any people of color reading my story,

I am so SO sorry. Apparently, a person on Twitter had explained that calling Luz “the Latina” is actually very racist. 

I had ABSOLUTELY NO Idea that this is actually a way to dehumanize her. That was never my intention. Luz is such a wonderful piece character to have in modern day cartoons, and I didn’t see that hidden harm I was doing. 

I was being an absolutely disgusting white person who was ignorant to what I was doing. I failed to do my research and I am afraid that I have secretly hurt someone. 

So I am just gonna say this out loud.

I was fucking awful. 

I was stupid. I was dumb. And I, of course, was being unintentionally racist. 

Remember, this is what I NEVER intended to do. I had absolutely no clue that I was actually dehumanizing Luz. 

Luz is one of my favorite characters I have, and I am so so SO sorry for doing her dirty.

But please. Don’t see me as this racist, dehumanizing racist that just writes “the Latina” out of spite. Please...I REALLY had no idea. 

But I’m not gonna lay around and not change the mistakes I made. I will change “Latina” to “the human” because Luz IS the only human on the Boiling Isles. 

Once again, I am so so sorry for not realizing the hidden harm I was doing and unintentionally spreading racism on AO3.

I will be slow to changing all the “Latinas” in the fic, but I promise they will all be gone.

I apologize to all the people that read my fic that are the same ethnicity as Luz. I apologize to the people working tirelessly to end racism. And I apologize to this site as a whole.

I hope you all understand. 

Have a nice day,

Spinel 

PS: If anyone is wondering, this is where I found out the whole “Don’t refer to Luz as “the Latina” in a story” from this tweet:

https://the-lone-witch-and-secret-room.tumblr.com/post/644212524651249664/stop-doing-this-yes-its-done-in-many-fics#notes 

[yes it’s from Tumblr, but my points still stands]

Also, DO NOT ATTACK THE PERSON WHO MADE THE TWEET OR THE PERSON THAT REBLOGGED IT ON TUMBLR. I am NOT supportive of attacking people that are just trying to prove something that is problematic. 

Once again, I am so sorry. I will change everything when I get the chance. Just...not now. I am swamped with work so I need to take care of that first.

**Author's Note:**

> What this??? A non-Sonic story??? Has the world gone mad?!?
> 
> But really, I'm super duper sorry for not being able to update Sonic Seas in a while. I haven't really found any newfound inspiration to write more about it. But I promise that I haven't abandoned it yet. Instead, read this first chapter of my new Owl House Fanfiction. 
> 
> Also, please please PLEASE watch the Owl House. It makes me feel super good inside! :D


End file.
